Now, approximately a year after my own symptoms began, the distortions have become much more manageable. The sulphuric musk of onions, garlic and peppers has quieted, though I no longer enjoy the flavors in excess. Berries are much more ambrosial, but no longer top my favorites list. That floral perfume that I used to love is no longer offensive, but I simply don’t enjoy it anymore. The highlight of my healing process happened very recently when I noticed that my partner finally smelled like himself again.

— Read more in Examining the Debilitating Effects of Post-COVID Parosmia at BioSpace.

“I’ve bought this candle before, and the fragrance would fill the room. This one barely has a scent. Boo.” reads a Yankee Candle Amazon review from December 20, 2021.

— On using Yankee Candle reviews as an epidemiological tool; read more in Hmm, angry reviews of candles with ‘no scent’ are spiking again... at Input.

New research Thursday aims to quantify a life-altering aftereffect of covid-19: a lingering loss of smell, also known as anosmia. The study estimates that up to 1.6 million people in the U.S. have experienced chronic anosmia lasting at least six months following their coronavirus infection.

— Read more in Over a Million Americans May Have Permanently Lost Their Sense of Smell to Covid-19 at Gizmodo, or the original study, Growing Public Health Concern of COVID-19 Chronic Olfactory Dysfunction, at JAMA.

In response, some researchers are revisiting the concept of physical therapy for the nose in order to help restore what Covid-19 and other ailments have taken away. The only problem: nasal physiology is incredibly difficult to study, and the experimental therapy — while helpful to some — doesn’t provide the kind of evidence doctors normally need to adopt a new treatment widely.

— Read more in Post-Covid, Many Patients Try Smell Therapy. But Does it Work? at Undark.