Perrie Edwards diagnosed with life-changing condition after childhood fire

Perrie Edwards, a member of Little Mix, has faced challenges due to being born without the sense of smell. However, this condition also posed a serious risk to her life. 

The singer disclosed that she only discovered her inability to smell after a fire devastated the kitchen of her childhood home in South Shields. Surprisingly, she was oblivious to the danger of the fire because she couldn't detect the smell of burning as reported by The Mirror. 

Perrie, who turns 31 next week, recalls: “I couldn't smell it. Our kitchen had set on fire. I saw the black smoke come under the door. And then I started coughing because it takes your breath away.”

Although her family managed to escape without injury, the alarming incident prompted her mother to seek medical tests for Perrie.

Medical professionals diagnosed her with congenital anosmia, a condition characterized by the absence of the sense of smell from birth, which is estimated to affect 1 in 10,000 individuals.

“I had surgery, came out, had big tampons in my nose, recovered for a while. And then I swear to God I could smell coffee. I woke up and smelled the coffee.”

However, her ability to smell didn't remain for long, and soon she found herself with no sense of smell at all.

Doctors informed her parents that she would require the procedure once more, but Perrie opted not to undergo it.

“I was like, I'm not going through that again. I don't care. If I had it and lost it, fair enough. But I've never had it, so why care?”