Relationship Between Poor Olfaction and Mortality
Authors: Esme R. Fuller-Thomson, Elysia G. Fuller-Thomson
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2019)

Letters1 October 2019Relationship Between Poor Olfaction and MortalityEsme R. Fuller-Thomson, PhD and Elysia G. Fuller-ThomsonEsme R. Fuller-Thomson, PhDInstitute for Life Course & Aging, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (E.R.F., E.G.F.)Search for more papers by this author and Elysia G. Fuller-ThomsonInstitute for Life Course & Aging, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (E.R.F., E.G.F.)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/L19-0467 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:Liu and colleagues' article (1) indicates that poor olfaction was associated with higher long-term mortality from both neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases. We hypothesize that lifetime exposure to airborne lead pollution may be a common underlying cause that is associated with both poor olfaction and mortality from these conditions. We have previously noted (2) that blood lead levels (BLLs) in the late 1970s (before tetraethyl lead additives in gasoline were phased out) were extremely high; at that time, persons in the United States had an average BLL of 13 µg/dL (2). Among U.S. children younger than 6 years, ...References1. Liu B, Luo Z, Pinto JM, et al. Relationship between poor olfaction and mortality among community-dwelling older adults. A cohort study. Ann Intern Med. 2019;170:673-81. [PMID: 31035288]. doi:10.7326/M18-0775 LinkGoogle Scholar2. Fuller-Thomson E. Might lifetime exposure to lead confound the association between hearing impairment and incident dementia? [Letter]. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2018;73:991-2. [PMID: 29529129] doi:10.1093/gerona/glx238 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Grashow R, Sparrow D, Hu H, et al. Cumulative lead exposure is associated with reduced olfactory recognition performance in elderly men: the Normative Aging Study. Neurotoxicology. 2015;49:158-64. [PMID: 26121922] doi:10.1016/j.neuro.2015.06.006 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Bakulski KM, Rozek LS, Dolinoy DC, et al. Alzheimer's disease and environmental exposure to lead: the epidemiologic evidence and potential role of epigenetics. Curr Alzheimer Res. 2012;9:563-73. [PMID: 22272628] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Lanphear BP, Rauch S, Auinger P, et al. Low-level lead exposure and mortality in US adults: a population-based cohort study. Lancet Public Health. 2018;3:e177-84. [PMID: 29544878] doi:10.1016/S2468-2667(18)30025-2 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Institute for Life Course & Aging, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (E.R.F., E.G.F.)Disclosures: Authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest. Forms can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=L19-0467. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoRelationship Between Poor Olfaction and Mortality Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults Bojing Liu , Zhehui Luo , Jayant M. Pinto , Eric J. Shiroma , Gregory J. Tranah , Karin Wirdefeldt , Fang Fang , Tamara B. Harris , and Honglei Chen Relationship Between Poor Olfaction and Mortality Bojing Liu , Zhehui Luo , and Honglei Chen Metrics Cited byOlfactory loss is a predisposing factor for depression, while olfactory enrichment is an effective treatment for depressionMechanisms Linking Olfactory Impairment and Risk of Mortality 1 October 2019Volume 171, Issue 7Page: 525-526KeywordsCardiovascular diseasesChildrenForecastingHealth surveysMini mental state examinationMortalityNutritionPathology and laboratory medicinePollutionProspective studies ePublished: 1 October 2019 Issue Published: 1 October 2019 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2019 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...