UEA to explore if vitamin could help recover sense of smell after Covid
Prior research from Germany found that found Vitamin A held potential benefits.
Last updated 29th Sep 2021
The University of East Anglia are launching a project to examine whether Vitamin A can help people regain their sense of smell.
Previous research from Germany found that found the Vitamin held potential benefits.
The UEA will now explore how treatment can help repair tissues in the nose damaged by viruses.
Smell loss is a common symptom of Covid-19, but many viruses have been causing smell loss and distortion long before this.
While most people naturally regain their sense of smell within a couple of weeks, many have been left with on-going smell disorders.
The UEA hope that this new study, funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), could ultimately help improve the lives of millions around the world who suffer from smell loss, by returning their fifth sense.
Pre-pandemic it was estimated that 5% of the global population were affected affected by complete loss of smell, while 20% suffered from a partial loss of smell.
It is also believed that this percentage went up amongst those older than 65 years old and that 75% of those aged over 80 years old suffered from some form of distortion.
Professor Carl Philpott from UEA’s Norwich Medical School told us that the pandemic is making people take the issue more seriously: "Only those that experience losing it, understand the significance of it.
"People find it easier to relate to blindness or deafness.
"It's only over the last 18 months or so with the pandemic and so many people losing their smell, albeit temporarily, that people's eyes have been opened a bit more to the subject matter".
He went on to say that the issue has also been significantly overlooked in the medical world as well: "We don't have any well-established treatments for this problem. In the medical world there's always been an apathy when it comes to treating smell and taste disorders".
Professor Philpott concluded by telling us that regardless of the projects results, it is likely to be the first of many on this topic: "Even if we get a negative result and it doesn't show what we want it to show, it basically opens a pathway to say here's a subject that we need to investigate further".
"Here's a process that we used for the first few trials and then there's other things we can look to evaluate in exactly the same way going forwards".