Do young children have enhanced sense of smell?

[AllisonR]

5 yo DS occasionally remarks about a smell that I can''t distinguish at all. For example this morning he said "mom, you smell a little like blood." I got my period yesterday. He did the same thing last month. So now it is wigging me out. I can't tell if someone has their period by their smell.

OK, I admit, a really weird question. But dying of curiosity. Anyone have similar experiences?

[Loki]

I don't think its all kids, as my son has super-sensitive sense of smell and my daughter does not. My son can totally smell when I have my period, which also freaks me out. He can also smell if I've eaten a cookie/granola bar within the past couple hours and has picked up other things that I would never even be aware of myself. We tell him he has a wolf's nose.

[journeymom]

I think some people have super smellers. But it also might be a child vs adult thing. It may be that your sense of smell isn't as strong as it used to be.

[LynnS6]

I think this is an individual difference -- my mom and both my kids have super senses of smell. They'll smell things that no one else can.

[strawberryprincess]

well, newborns can distinguish the smell of their own mother's breastmilk. smell is a sense that dullens over time. I think some kids hold on to that, or it's just their natural "gift". I can hear really really well (compared to most people around me) but I have horrible vision. we all have our strengths

that is kinda disconcerting to be able to smell someone being on their period though.

[PreggieUBA2C]

I am hyper-sensate and have always been. My dc seem to be as well, even moreso than I am presently, but I think my senses, although still extreme, have been dulled since I was a child.

I have a damaged ear drum and a damaged eye, and yet I still see and hear much more than most people. My sense of smell is extremely irritating, as is my sense of touch. I don't think it's super to be this way though; my favourite invention is the sensory deprivation tank; I am considering building one for myself. The world can be an overwhelming place with hyper-sensitivities.

ETA: If a woman is not wearing a fragrance, which seems to be pretty rare, then I can smell blood too.

ETA again: Even more irritating is that the sense of smell is so highly linked with taste. I love living out of town because the range of smells/tastes I endure is fairly limited and mostly pleasant. I rode the city bus as a teen; that was a nightmare.

[chamomeleon]

My 5 y.o. son is also very sensitive to smells, and it always amazes me how he is able to identify the smell of a person or place out of context. For example, if I have been to a friend's house without him, when I come home and hug him he will say, "You smell like K's house," even when he doesn't know where I've been. It can be embarrassing at times, coupled with a 5 y.o.'s frankness. We are vegan, so sometimes if we go to someone's house and they have cooked or are cooking meat or eggs, he will loudly declare, "Auuggghhh! It smells TERRIBLE in here!"

He has never mentioned being able to smell blood when I'm on my period. One thing that occurred to me reading the other posts was that the physical proximity of a 5 y.o.'s nose to the source of the blood is quite a bit closer than an adult's!

[Mom2M]

I think some people are more sensitive to smells.

I am terribly sensitive to smells to the point where I get physically ill. Just walking down the street it hurts when people are running their dryers and using fabric softener or opening the newspaper and flipping the pages.
Yes, I can tell when women have their period and also I usually smell an illness. If I go to a Walmart, I nearly pass out because of the smells of chemicals, especially the clothing.
It is magnified while pregnant.

Poor DD1, it seems like she has inherited this. My boys have not and I don't know yet about DD2.

[Redheaded_Momma]

I've heard your sense of smell peaks around age 10.

[Bug-a-Boo's Mama]

From the title of this thread, my answer was going to be yes, but after reading others responses, it would appear no.

I actually think for DS it is partially a smell thing and a more sensitive gag reflex. He can gag and even vomit from some bad smells, but also seeing a runny nose can cause him to throw up. It seems to have lessened a bit, but I am also hyper sensitive to it and move him quickly along with telling him to breath through his mouth.

I'm a bit concerned for him when he starts VPK in the fall. Definitely talking to the teachers about his smell/gag reflex.

[Oubliette8]

Originally Posted by chamomeleon

One thing that occurred to me reading the other posts was that the physical proximity of a 5 y.o.'s nose to the source of the blood is quite a bit closer than an adult's!

I was thinking the exact same thing!

I think its possible that some people are more sensitive to certain scents than others- like some people are genetically able to taste certain things that others don't (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superta...ation_in_taste )

Myself, this is a bit strange, but I used to work in a pet shop. I can tell male hamsters from female hamsters by scent alone. Females have a distinct smell that males don't (and yes, I always double check). However, my coworkers thought I was nuts, they could smell no difference what so ever between the males and females. I've since tested this theory on hamster owners- and sure enough some report that ALL female hamsters are stinky, and others report not being able to smell anything at all.

[SomethingAnonymous]

Originally Posted by AllisonR

5 yo DS occasionally remarks about a smell that I can''t distinguish at all. For example this morning he said "mom, you smell a little like blood." I got my period yesterday. He did the same thing last month. So now it is wigging me out. I can't tell if someone has their period by their smell.

OK, I admit, a really weird question. But dying of curiosity. Anyone have similar experiences?

Yeah I have definitely been able to tell that some women are menstruating by the smell before. I once mentioned to my ex something about it, and he said he could smell it too. But don't be freaked out by it... oh no! they will know you are a woman!

ETA: It's not just the smell of blood.. it's like blood and something else, I always thought it was the different hormones or something?

[abeliamama]

ETA: It's not just the smell of blood.. it's like blood and something else, I always thought it was the different hormones or something?

To me it is a metallic smell...


I wonder if this is why my son is such a picky eater. He often moves to another table to eat because he can't stand the smell of our food, especially beans and spicy stuff.

[attached2ethan]

My kids are both very sensitive to smells- a lot moreso than I am, but I have sinus issues so my sense of smell is squat.

My 7yo will sniff when I'm around and say "mom, did you just eat chocolate" and it cracks me up. But somehow, he manages to ignore the stench of his feet and wears socks for days in a row until forced to changed them. LMAO!

My 4yo just recently started commenting on the way things smell. He says he hates the smell of salad, even from across the table- I can't figure out how anyone can smell salad from that far away. He also asks us if we pass gass all the time, which cracks me up- he obviously smells something the rest of us cannot.

I remember being like that as a kid too- maybe it's just an instinct that we're born with for survival and it dulls over time, as we don't rely as heavily on smell as an adult per se, as we do when we're an infant looking for a boob

[AbbieB]

I have a sense of smell that comes and goes. Sometimes I can smell my family's (my mother and kids) unique scent and sometimes not. DD seems to have this too. I have noticed my sense of smell peaks at a certain point in my cycle.

I seem to be the only person in the world that can smell my son's very distinct earthy smell. Everyone else just smells sweet baby smell if anything.

DH does not share the sweet family scent. In fact he has a more mature version of DS's earthy smell.

Something really weird to me... my kids smell very strongly after hanging out with my mom. She has the same sweet smell, but when they get together it's like they dowsed themselves in that heavenly sweet smell. It also lingers for a bit too. By the third day post visit it's usually down to the average daily level.

I can remember being aware of my another of my mother's scents as a kid too. Not a blood smell but a scent that was probably happening when she was ovulating. It was different than her average sweet smell. Gross, I know. But I was not aware of what it was then, thank goodness. I would have been horrified.

DD, who is 6, can smell my breasts/milk still. She talks about it sometimes when her brother is nursing. Sometimes she just nuzzles my breasts and mentions that the milk smells so good.

[CarrieMF]

To me it is a metallic smell...

it's the iron

I work with a little boy who's very low functioning autistic. he's 8. He definitly has a good sense of smell, especially for sweet stuff. The kindergarten class made gingerbread houses & I couldn't figure out why he wanted in there so bad until I saw them. Then I had to carry him away. If the classroom door is closed & they're having cupcakes(brought in on birthdays) he gets very excited 10-15feet from the door & runs to it. He can tell when the new milk delivery has been brought in & runs to the milk room when he's 10-15 feet away.

[2cutiekitties]

I read that your smell sense fades as you get older. My son also has an amazing sense of smell and is constantly commenting on things. I am kind of glad my amazing sense of smell has faded as I wouldnt want to be gagging all the time like him!