Blind people and extra-heightened senses

I was watching "daredevil" the other day and the main character happens to be blind but his other senses like hearing and touch are very heightened. I know this is just an act but could there be some truth behind this? Do blind people hear or smell better than normal folks?

 

Well they wouldn't have better senses but they could more in tune with there other senses then we are since we focus heavily on sight and they obviously dont

 

People make use of what they have. I've seen a person without limbs learn how to swim, a person without hands learned how to write through their feet and blind people who use radar clicking noises like dolphins to know if something/someone is in their way. I think your senses might get heightened or you just learn to rely on other abilities.

 

True indeed. Blind people would utilise other senses in their daily life, although not necessarily heightened but used in a way in which people with eye sight haven't used it.

 

I have heard this is true, it's something I always heard growing up and assumed was true. But... I never even thought to question it; I don't know if they have ever really studied it? It makes sense but it seems like it would be hard to know for sure. I wonder if Mythbusters has done this one?

 

I think the Mythbusters would have a hard time testing this one, because sensory compensation is something that happens over the years and is more prominent with people who have had to cope with losing one sense since childhood.

Basicaly when started at an early age, you can both over-develop the remaining senses you have as well as re-master a sense as long as the nerve and sensory organ are replaced (as is the case with cortical implants in deaf children).

 

Of course. If you live life without one of the senses, then your body (and you) have to adapt to the handicap and make use of your other senses better. Hearing, smell, are all improved through practice, as the lack of the ability to see would push the person into "seeing" using environmental cues like sound or smell. That's why blind people can still react normally to ongoing traffic, they can hear the cars and can sense the vibrations on the road, and they can get to the other side safely.