Illicit Drug Use and Smell and Taste Dysfunction: A National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2013–2014

Taste and smell dysfunction are suspected to be associated with substance use. However, representative epidemiological studies remain insufficient. This cross-sectional study explored the relationship between drug use (including cannabis or hashish, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine) and olfactory/gustatory dysfunction using data from the 2013–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. In this study, participants who completed the smell examination with mean age of 59 were classified into four groups: cannabis users (n = 845), participants without cannabis use (n = 794), illicit drug users (n = 450), and participants without illicit drug use (n = 2000). Participants who completed the taste examination with mean age of 58 were also categorised into four groups: cannabis users (n = 810), participants without cannabis use (n = 714), illicit drug users (n = 428), and participants without illicit drug use (n = 1815). Logistic regression models investigated the association between cannabis or illicit drug use and smell or taste dysfunctions among study participants. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated. Finally, we did not find correlations between illicit drug use and dysfunction of taste or smell senses; our findings were consistent in many subgroup analyses. We recommend that further studies explore the mechanism and dose of illicit drug use that could have chemosensory impacts.