Doty R L, Shaman P, Applebaum S L, Giberson R, Siksorski L, Rosenberg L
Science. 1984 Dec 21;226(4681):1441-3. doi: 10.1126/science.6505700.
Smell identification ability was measured in 1955 persons ranging in age from 5 to 99 years. On the average, women outperformed men at all ages, and nonsmokers outperformed smokers. Peak performance occurred in the third through fifth decades and declined markedly after the seventh. More than half of those 65 to 80 years old evidenced major olfactory impairment. After 80 years, more than three-quarters evidenced major impairment. Given these findings, it is not surprising that many elderly persons complain that food lacks flavor and that the elderly account for a disproportionate number of accidental gas poisoning cases each year.
对1955名年龄在5岁至99岁之间的人进行了嗅觉识别能力测试。平均而言，女性在各个年龄段的表现都优于男性，不吸烟者的表现优于吸烟者。嗅觉识别能力在30多岁到50多岁达到峰值，70岁以后显著下降。65岁至80岁的人群中，超过一半的人有明显的嗅觉损伤。80岁以后，超过四分之三的人有明显的损伤。鉴于这些发现，许多老年人抱怨食物缺乏味道，且老年人每年在意外煤气中毒事件中所占比例过高，就不足为奇了。
