A study from Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, and other scientific research institutions found that the loss of taste or smell after COVID-19 infection may be related to the intensity of the immune response of infected people.

The study was published in the Public Library of Science. The researchers studied blood samples from 306 people who recovered from COVID-19 infection at the beginning of the pandemic and found that those with higher antibody levels tended to be those who reported a loss of smell or taste. These patients were twice as likely to lose taste or smell as those with no above-average antibody levels in the blood.