What Food Tastes Like with Little Sense of Taste

[Rebecca263]

The new chemotherapy that I am on has changed my sense of smell and taste completely. I've lost 24 pounds in the past 3 weeks because of it. UGH.

Everything still has aroma and taste, but it's all mucked about- for instance, bitter is unpleasantly so, whereas I used to enjoy it immensely! Tomatos taste of ketchup- especially if they are mixed with fresh basil!

Wood oven baked pizza tastes beyond awful- and I've been offered 3 different pies from 3 different pizzerias!

All of my teas are unpalateable as well.

So is coffee.

I can still stomach blueberries and bananas, eggs, some olive oils, and commercial apple juice.

Until yesterday, grape juice was very pleasant, but last night I found the bitterness in it unbearable.

This is very interesting, as I've never cared for bottled apple juice before.

The strangest thing of all is that I have tried 4 other chemotherapies in the past year and none of those has effected this kind of change, or ANY change, in my senses.

IT STINKS.

[gariotin]

Rebecca, I think it is very possible that you will regain your "real" taste when the chemo ends. I've read a lot about smell and it is very typical for medications or treatments to interfere with the receptors. I hope your buds are restored and also that this is your last chemo!

It's interesting to read about Moses referring to his "memory bank" of smells - even tho he is imagining what they must be like. I think that is what makes the loss of a previously strong sense of smell so sad - I mourn certain things. In the Spring, I buy loads of fresh flowers hyacinths, daffs, etc and still hold them up to breathe deeply. I miss that experience - along with the aromas of fresh cut lemons, the pungent-ness of smashing a clove of garlic with the side of a knife, the sweet-sour of cutting into the first ripe tomato of the summer. Crushed basil, mint, oregano, warm from the garden... Not to mention holding my first grandchild and not being able to "smell" him - this is a huge thing for human bonding.

In the beginning, I used to dream of smelling quite often, but sadly I have lost that as time has gone by. Every once in a while, I still dream with aroma, and wake up with loss.

[iguana]

One thing I find disturbing about my reduction in the ability to sense smells is that it makes it harder to judge when food is 'off'. I was about to cook some salmon last week when my husband came in and said 'what stinks???'. Could be dangerous!

Jen

[Lior]

Hello! So sorry to hear about everyone's taste issues! A cold is one thing, but chemo and its effects... If only you could find find something stomachable, Rebecca!

When I went through my pregnancies I had changes in tastes. I am a coffee lover, but coffee tasted like cheap metal coins- like licking metal-ugh! Eggs and their smell would send me out of the house no matter the time or weather. I suppose it is a hormonal thing.

Wishing you all healthy appetites and smells and tastes!

[gariotin]

One thing I find disturbing about my reduction in the ability to sense smells is that it makes it harder to judge when food is 'off'.  I was about to cook some salmon last week when my husband came in and said 'what stinks???'.  Could be dangerous! 

Jen

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You are right, Jen - the 3 biggest dangers for people with no smell are fire, gas leaks, and food poisoning. My kids always find gnarly smelly things in my fridge when they come to visit, and I have been known to pour curdy milk into my coffee b/c I can't smell it before I try to use it.

Actually, one of my phobic fears is that one of my outdoor cats will get skunked, come sleep on my bed, and I"ll head out to Starbucks the next morning for coffee reeking of skunk! People will be recoiling in disgust while I calmly wait in line for my morning joe...

[blue_dolphin]

I had a brain injury about seven years ago and have a total loss of my sense of smell.  I have been to the U of Pa clinic, as well - they gave me no hope of its returning.

...

Wine is a sadness - I never taste at the table, even if I have made the wine choice.  I am not confident that I could identify a corky bottle.

Overall, losing one's smell is obviously not as serious as losing sight or hearing.  But I am increasingly convinced that smell may be our most primal sense, and operates in a way that is often subliminal.  Life without it is diminished, both for the richness of aroma and the complexity of tastes.  On the other hand, I have my intelligence and memory intact - looking at it that way, smell is a small price to pay.

Wow, I could have written so much of your post, although I don't share the irony of working in the food industry. I also lost my sense of smell about 7 years ago. Other weird symptoms and lots of frightening hypothetical diagnoses and tests which I bailed out of after visiting an oral surgeon, a head and neck surgeon, an ear, nose and throat specialist, infectious diseases guy, a rheumatologist and a neurologist.

The synergy of wonderful wine and food pairings is something I miss greatly. Friends still turn to me to choose wines at restaurants, but like you, I'm not sure I could spot a corked bottle. I used to love trying new recipes but now I'm much more inclined to choose an old favorite so I can trigger those old olfactory memories!

I always loved contrasts - sweet:sour, crisp:chewy, hot:cool - that I can still enjoy. Chili peppers still add spice although I can eat wasabi by the spoonful as a party trick!

Every now and then I think I've perceived a little whiff of something but it's probably just an olfactory halucination.