Anosmia Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive Senses Essays

AnosmiaHave you ever wondered what your life would be like if you did not turn out one of your five esthesiss? At some point in our lives we have all seen a blind or deaf person but how a great deal do we wonder what it would be like if we were in their shoes? Many people take their senses for granted, not giving much thought to the fact that something as simple as bumping your fling the wrong way or getting a cold could take away your sense of smell forever. Anosmia is the total spill of the sense of smell and affects approximately two million Americans (Wuensch, 2001). Of all the five senses, smell seems to be the least appreciated due to our societys beliefs that sight and hearing be more important for survival (Gillyatt, 1997). For most people, once they start to notice a decrease in their hearing or sight they go to the define almost immediately to fix the problem. However, because the sense of taste and smell are so closely related, many people attribute the problem to a leave out of taste and do not see their doctor until the damage is irreversible (Thomson, 2001). Anosmia is a condition in which although there are mild cases, more solemn cases do exist which may jeopardize the victims life. This disorder not only affects the persons life and safety, but also has psychological effects as well . In any case, anosmia should not only be taken seriously, but research should be continued in the hopes of finding better treatments.Lacking a sense of smell has similar psychological effects as those related to losing ones sight or hearing. For example, many blind people feel cut off from the conception and isolated. This case is also seen in many people with anosmia. Some people with anosmia feel physically and socially vulnerable as well a... ...ed, Suckling, Suzuki, Swift, & Williams (2001). Functional charismatic resonance imaging of odor indentification The effect of aging. Journals of Gerontology, 56A(12), M756-760.Gillyatt, P., (1997). Loss of sm ell when the nose doesnt know. Harvard Health Letter, 22, 6-8.Morgan (2000). Olfactory event-related potentials in Alzheimers disease. Dissertation Abstracts International, 61(5-B), 2773.Ogawa & Rutka (1999). Olfactory dysfunction in head ingured workers. Acta Oto-Laryngologica, 119(540), 50-57.Thomson, Corp. (2001). Senses- Loss of Smell How it happens and what it means. Harvard College.Toller, Van (1999). Assessing the impact of anosmia review of a questionnaires findings. Chemical Senses, 24(6), 705-712.Wuensch, L. (2001, November 10). How frequent is anosmia? Online. Available http//www.personal.ecu.edu/wuenschk/anos-freq.htm