Know your Body – Nose

NOSE

A big batch of cookies coming out of the oven. Your gym bag is full of dirty clothes. How do you smell these smells and thousands more? It’s your nose, of course. Your nose lets you smell and it’s a big part of why you can taste things. The nose is also the main gate to the respiratory system, your body’s system for breathing. Let’s be nosy and find out some more about the nose.

Did you know that humans can tell the difference between about 10,000 smells? This incredible sense helps you to taste and enjoy things.

The nose has two holes called nostrils. The nostrils and the nasal passages are separated by a wall called the septum (say: septum). Deep inside your nose, close to your skull, your septum is made of very thin pieces of bone. When you inhale air through your nostrils, the air enters the nasal passages and travels into your nasal cavity. The air then passes down the back of your throat into the trachea

The nose allows you to make scents of what’s going on in the world around you. Just as your eyes give you information by seeing and your ears help you out by hearing, the nose lets you figure out what’s happening by smelling. It does this with help from many parts hidden deep inside your nasal cavity and head.

Most people just think of the tongue when they think about taste. But you couldn’t taste anything without the help from the nose! The ability to smell and taste go together because odors from foods allow us to taste more fully. Take a bite of food and think about how it tastes. Then pinch your nose and take another bite. Notice the difference? It’s just another reason to appreciate your knockout of a nose!