A common aspect of having a cold is nose congestion ("stuffy nose"). Air is not able to flow past your olfactory receptors, so you cannot detect smells. When eating, it is olfactory receptors, and not taste receptors, that detect the smells of your food and relate those to your brain as flavors.
-Suppose you are trying to convince your sick child to drink some medicine that he knows does not taste good. You tell him to hold his nose while he drinks it because that will help take the bad taste away. Does your statement have any truth to it?
A) Yes. Holding your nose allows you to detect multiple tastes at one time.
B) Yes. Holding your nose increases production of glutamate.
C) Yes. Holding your nose dulls the sensitivity of taste receptors.
D) Yes. Holding your nose has the same effect as having a congested nose.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Holding your nose can reduce the ability to detect smells, which in turn can diminish the perception of flavors, similar to how a congested nose limits smell detection and therefore flavor perception. Taste is primarily detected through the olfactory receptors when it comes to the complexity of flavors beyond the basic tastes (sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and umami), so blocking these receptors by holding the nose can make unpleasant tastes less noticeable.

A Common Aspect of Having a Cold Is Nose Congestion