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This week's new questions

A reader asks why they lost their sense of smell after a snake bite. And why do we get a cold sensation in our mouth or nose when eating or inhaling menthol?

12 June 2019

snake

Ken Griffiths Alamy

A few years ago, I was bitten on the hand by a red-bellied black snake. After a night in intensive care (during which I was not given antivenom), I soon recovered, with one exception: the complete loss of my sense of smell. How can a bite on the hand do this and could it affect other senses?

Tony Blake, Adelaide, South Australia

Why do we experience a cold sensation in our mouth or nose when eating or inhaling menthol?

Tegan Edwards, Ipswich, Suffolk, UK

 

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