In a peculiar revelation, scientists propose that your sense of smell might hold clues to predicting your time of death. A 2014 study, focusing on olfactory dysfunction as a harbinger of mortality, asserted that the loss of smell is a more potent predictor of impending death than heart failure, cancer, or lung disease.

Dr. Jayant Pinto, the lead author, likens the loss of smell to a canary in the coal mine—an early warning indicating underlying health issues. The study, involving 3,005 older U.S. adults, assessed their olfactory abilities by having them identify five scents: peppermint, fish, orange, rose, and leather.

Results showed that 78% of participants with accurate identification had normal smelling abilities, 20% with two or three correct identifications had moderate smell loss, and 3.5% struggling to identify any or only one scent exhibited significant loss. After five years, 39% of the deceased adults had shown a significant loss of smell, suggesting a correlation between olfactory dysfunction and mortality.

While the damaged olfactory system itself doesn’t cause death, researchers speculate that a decreased ability to smell may indicate a decline in the body’s ability to rebuild key components, potentially contributing to mortality by other causes. The study suggests that olfactory dysfunction might be a sign of slowed cellular regeneration or the cumulative effects of environmental exposures over the years.