On Anosmia Awareness Day, Cadent Customer Safeguarding Specialist Ellen Wardle, shares some gas safety advice for those affected by loss or lack of smell...
The sense of smell is like many things, it’s something we can take for granted unless we don’t have it.
In addition to enabling us to savour numerous pleasant aromas such as a well-cooked meal, fresh flowers or a pleasing cologne scent our sense of smell can also act as a potentially lifesaving early warning system.
Today (February 27) marks Anosmia Awareness Day. Anosmia is the medical term for the loss or lack of a sense of smell, and it’s thought that around 5 per cent of the UK population* have the condition. There are a variety of causes for Anosmia, which can be temporary or permanent and those with it may also experience a reduced sense of taste. However, Anosmia can have potentially lethal consequences as those who have it may be unable to detect potentially lethal warning odours such as smoke or gas.
The natural gas that we use in the UK has no natural smell, so odorant is added to it which gives the gas its characteristic ‘rotten egg’ smell, enabling potential gas leaks to be identified, reported and repaired.
If you have a problem with your sense of smell and use gas appliances within your home, you could be at risk if there is a problem with your gas, as you may not be able to smell any escaping gas.
Cadent has been working with Fifth Sense, a charity working with those affected by taste and smell disorders, and we’ve outlined these four simple steps to help you stay safe in your home:
1. Get your gas appliances serviced every year by a Gas Safe Registered engineer. Visit gassaferegister.co.uk or call 0800 408 5500.
2. Fit a natural gas detector – these can detect dangerous and ignitable gas escaping and will sound an alarm to warn you of the danger.
3. Know what to do in the event of a gas escape – if your gas detector sounds, call the National Gas Emergency service immediately for free on 0800 111 999 (Calls are recorded and may be monitored)
4. Sign up to the Priority Services Register (PSR) and gain access to additional support. In the event of a gas emergency, you will receive extra services tailored to meet your needs. For more on the PSR visit
https://cadentgas.com/help-advice/supporting-our-customers/priority-services-register, to join the PSR either call us on 0345 835 1111 or email
wecare@cadentgas.com
For more on Fifth Sense visit https://www.fifthsense.org.uk/
* The Impact of Olfactory Disorders in the United Kingdom Carl M. Philpott1,2 and Duncan Boak3
1Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK, 2The Smell & Taste Clinic, James Paget University Hospital, Gorleston, UK, and 3Fifth Sense, London, UK