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Five percent of people who have recovered from COVID still don’t have their senses of taste or smell back after six months, according to a new study. And the consequences of this mysterious complication of the virus can be far-reaching. “They tend to be distraught about the loss of sense of smell. It’s such an important part of our every day and what makes us human,” Dr. Aria Jafari, a rhinologist at the UW Medicine Sinus Center in Seattle, told NBC News. “The most common thing I hear is that it leads to social isolation and feeling disconnected from the world and society as they know it. And that can be really bothersome.” Researcher found that 30 days after infection, three-fourths of patients had regained their ability to taste and smell, and after three months, 90 percent were back to normal. But some 27 million people worldwide are estimated to be suffering six months on.