Human Nose Facts

The human nose has many important uses.

The human nose uses millions of cells to detect approximately 10,000 odors, far less than many animals, but important for maintaining a good quality of life. The sense of smell affects the ability to taste as well as the proper functioning of a human's immune system. Rhinoplasty, or nose surgery, is one of the most common plastic surgeries performed and can change the appearance of the nose, as well as improve the ability to breathe.

Function

Each person detects odors differently.

Two small odor-detecting patches made up of approximately 6 million cells and located high in the nasal passages give humans the ability to smell. The air flow in the nose follows an intricate pattern as complex as blood flowing through the heart. Your nose is best able to detect odors late in the day and two people smelling something such as a flower will report different impressions. Each person has a distinguishing odor identity.

Keen Sense

Women have a sharper sense of smell.

A woman's sense of sense is sharper than that of a man. Newborns are highly sensitive to how their mother smells. While human beings on average can detect approximately 10,000 odors, many animals have a far keener sense of smell. In fact, a smaller portion of the human brain is focused on the sense of smell compared to animals and fish. People with certain psychiatric disorders, migraine sufferers and severe anorexics commonly have problems with the sense of smell.

Considerations

The ability to smell decreases with age.

Approximately 1 to 2 percent of Americans suffer from some type of damage to their sense of smell. A majority of these are over the age of 65, when a person's ability to smell tends to wane. An impaired sense of smell can have a major effect on a person's life and health, resulting in malfunctioning of the immune system as well as digestive disorders.

Misconceptions

The nose helps detect flavors.

Blind people cannot detect odors better than sighted people. Noses also act as the chief organ for detecting taste, as opposed to the taste buds located on the tongue. The tongue can distinguish sour, bitter, sweet and salty, but any other tastes are detected and identified by cells in our noses.

Nose Surgery

Known as rhinoplasty, nose surgery is performed to change the shape of the nose for cosmetic reasons or to improve breathing. The procedure is among the five most common plastic surgeries performed every year. Healing is slow and it can take up to a year before you see the final results of rhinoplasty.

References

• Consumer Guide to Plastic Surgery: What You Need to Know About Rhinoplasty
• MayoClinic.com: Rhinoplasty
• Science Daily: Scientists Find the Human Nose is More Complicated Than a Jumbo Jet
• Social Issues Research Centre: The Smell Report
• Sense of Smell Insitute: Fun Facts About the Sense of Smell

Resources

• Sense of Smell Insitute