system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Intense sound can deafen, intense light can blind. Can intense smell damage your olfactory system?

And I don't mean the nature of what you're smelling, i.e. Smelling chemical x will damage olfactory. I mean is it possible for something to smell so strongly that it damages your sense of smell?
gpt
Let's get this clear. Damage to your retina due to intense light is a result of the light having sufficient intensity to damage your rod and cone cells. Damage to your ears due to intense sound is a result of the sound's intensity damaging your hair cells. This isn't the same for olfaction, since a large amount of any one smell can't necessarily cause damage to the sensory cells. Certain noxious chemicals which can be inhaled, such as acids, can damage and kill the olfactory cells, but a strong smell alone is not enough to kill those cells.