The purpose of this agreement is to provide funding for scientific and technical support as well as quality assurance for the chemosensory (smell &taste) examination and questionnaire components in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which is operated by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). NIDCD funds will support incorporating standard measures of taste and smell into this nationally-representative, population based survey to determine the prevalence of taste and/or smell impairment in the U.S., as well as to identify risk factors for taste/smell loss and possible associated conditions such as obesity, altered dietary intake, and chronic illness (asthma, cardiovascular disease, etc.). The protocol will undergo pilot testing and evaluation in NHANES 2010 before implementation nationally in NHANES 2011 and beyond. The protocol builds upon standard clinical test procedures, the 20062009 Beaver Dam Wisconsin (BOSS Study) taste exam, and the recommendations of the chemosensory scientists who have designed the smell and taste exam protocols for the NIH Toolbox. This seems to be an appropriate time to add taste/smell exams to NHANES, since: 1) there will be a full dental exam component for the first time in several years added in 2011, and 2) the NHANES nutritional epidemiologists have recently recognized the value of adding smell and taste testing to augment the extensive NHANES diet survey components. Approximately 2,000 adults, ages 40 to 85+ years, from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds will participate each year in the taste and smell exam. NIDCD has funded an IAA with NCHS/NHANES and NCHS will contract the field work.
