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You might think that your senses of taste and smell have very little to do with your overall health. However, research suggests that these senses not only help determine your health but can be used to evaluate it. The strong link between health and these senses is why you need to make them a part of your health risk assessment activities. This will allow you to get a more complete view of your overall health status. It will also help you to pick up problems early enough to get the appropriate treatment.

Some Facts on Your Sense of Taste

The sense of taste is thought to have evolved as a survival mechanism. It guides food choices and may even protect the body against bad choices. For example, sugar tastes sweet and indicates that the food is a good source of energy. And conversely, when you eat foods that have gone bad, they often taste sour. This indicates to the body that you should stop eating before you get sick.

The human body can detect five major tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami, which is a savory taste. According to some sources, fat may be a sixth basic taste. Taste is also genetic, and children as young as six months old start to show their unique taste preferences. Taste is an important factor in evaluating your health risk and in determining your overall health. It seems obvious to say that your sense of taste determines what you eat, but people often overlook this fact. The truth is that your health is often determined by the foods you eat. And this is guided by the tastes that you do and don’t enjoy.

The Role of Taste in your Health

Your sense of taste has an important role in determining your overall health. The human body has taste receptors for sweet, bitter and umami all the way into the gastrointestinal tract. The sweet receptors in particular are important because when activated they cause a number of changes. These receptors initiate glucose absorption and activate hormones that create the feeling of fullness that ends the meal. This proves that your taste buds could have a profound effect on how much you eat, as well as what you eat.

The strength of your sense of taste is also an important indicator of your health risk. Studies have shown that some people are ‘super-tasters’. They have more visible taste buds on their tongue, so are more sensitive to specific tastes. This may sound like a benefit, but in reality it can severely affect their enjoyment of food. It may even restrict what types of food they’re willing to eat. For example, ‘super-tasters’ usually don’t enjoy bitter tastes, so don’t eat many vegetables. This can put them at higher risk of colon cancer. In contrast, people with no taste tend to prefer high sugar and high fat foods, putting them at higher risk of obesity and other related disorders.

Some Facts on Your Sense of Smell

Your sense of smell is much stronger and more varied than your sense of taste. Humans can recognize more than 10,000 different odors and this sense is very sensitive as well. In fact, humans can detect certain smells when they’re at a level of one part per trillion. This is an incredibly small amount. This sense may be so strong because it needs to help you avoid foods that have gone bad or are toxic. Additionally, in the past it may even have helped people locate appropriate food sources.

Smell as a Prognostic Tool

A diminished sense of smell is linked to a number of neurodegenerative issues. Diseases such as Parkinson’s can cause your sense of smell to become less acute or even to fail completely. This symptom can appear long before the motor disruptions that are characteristic of Parkinson’s. Because of this link, your sense of smell can act as an early warning system for specific health concerns. That’s why you should take note of any changes in the strength of this sense during your regular health assessment at home. And make sure you discuss the issue with your doctor at the earliest opportunity.

How to Evaluate your Senses in a Health Assessment

Using your senses of taste and smell to evaluate your health can give you important information about your health status. That’s why you need an easy way to make this evaluation part of your regular health assessment activities. You can now buy taste test strips that you can use in the privacy of your own home. The strips will taste different depending on your sensitivity to the agent on the strips. Monitoring your reactions to these strips, and any changes, will give you valuable information about the health of your body as a whole.

If you’re concerned about a specific health risk such as your sense of taste or smell, try using HomeLab. It will help you to keep track of your condition and monitor any preventative measures you take. And if you see signs of a significant problem, you should check with your doctor as soon as possible.

Tags: health risk, health risk assessment