Smell is closely connected with taste and can affect appetite, nutrition, and quality of life.

A reduced sense of smell can also affect safety.

Someone who cannot smell properly may have difficulty detecting smoke from a fire, a gas leak, spoiled food, or other potentially hazardous odors.

Persistent smell loss therefore deserves more attention than simply assuming your nose will eventually “fix itself.”

4. Unusual Nasal Discharge That Keeps Coming Back

Mucus is normal.

In fact, mucus serves important protective functions. It helps trap particles, allergens, and microorganisms before they travel deeper into the respiratory tract.

The appearance of nasal mucus can also change during an ordinary cold.

What deserves attention is a persistent or unusual pattern, especially when it lasts much longer than expected or occurs together with other symptoms.

For example, ongoing thick discharge may accompany chronic sinus inflammation.

A strong unpleasant odor can sometimes occur with infection or a retained foreign object, particularly in children.

A persistent discharge from only one side of the nose may also warrant medical evaluation, depending on the circumstances.

Don't diagnose an infection based on mucus color alone

A common misconception is that green or yellow mucus automatically means a person needs antibiotics.

That is not necessarily true.

Mucus can change color during viral infections and as inflammation develops. The color by itself does not establish a bacterial infection.

Doctors consider the overall pattern, including duration, severity, fever, facial pain, worsening after initial improvement, and other clinical findings.

This distinction is important because unnecessary antibiotic use can cause side effects and contributes to antibiotic resistance.

5. Persistent Nose or Facial Pain

Occasional discomfort around the nose can accompany a cold, allergies, or sinus irritation.

But persistent facial pain, pressure, or tenderness deserves attention—especially when it does not improve as expected.

People sometimes describe discomfort around the forehead, cheeks, eyes, or bridge of the nose.

Possible causes include sinus inflammation, migraine, dental problems, nasal conditions, facial injury, and other issues.

Not every headache around the face is a sinus problem.

In fact, migraine can sometimes produce nasal congestion or facial pressure, which can make the symptoms confusing.

When pain deserves prompt attention

Seek medical evaluation when facial or nasal pain is:

• Severe or rapidly worsening

• Associated with swelling around the eye

• Accompanied by vision changes

• Associated with a high fever or significant illness

• Persistent despite appropriate self-care

• Following a significant facial injury

Severe swelling around the eye, changes in vision, confusion, severe headache, or rapidly worsening symptoms can require urgent assessment because certain infections and other complications can become serious.

Other Nasal Changes Worth Paying Attention To

The five symptoms above are not the only nasal changes that can matter.

A persistent sore inside the nose, a mass or growth, repeated crusting, a major change in the shape of the nose after injury, or ongoing one-sided symptoms can also warrant evaluation.

Most of these symptoms have benign explanations.

That is important to remember.

A symptom being worth checking does not mean it is likely to represent a dangerous disease.

Healthcare professionals evaluate symptoms based on their duration, severity, pattern, medical history, examination findings, and sometimes imaging or laboratory tests.

Why Nasal Symptoms Can Be Easy to Dismiss

People often tolerate nasal symptoms for months because they seem minor.

A blocked nose becomes part of the daily routine.

A reduced sense of smell is blamed on getting older.

Occasional bleeding is attributed to dry weather.

Persistent facial pressure is treated as “just sinus problems.”

Sometimes those assumptions are correct.

Sometimes they aren't.