How to increase the sense of taste
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How to increase the sense of taste :
Many people notice an alteration in taste perceptions and/or smell during cancer treatment. Changes in taste and smell may vary depending on the type of treatment that you receive, be different for each person, and vary from day to day.
This can lead to frustration around food. Foods and drinks may taste different, muted or bland. You can also notice that you are more sensitive to food aromas or smells in general. It may take a few weeks or even months after treatment before you notice any improvement of taste and/or olfactory changes. The following tips may make changes in taste more tolerable:
- Drinks plenty of fluids: Drink plenty of fluids with your meals will improve the sense of taste. Not drinking enough fluids can lead to dry mouth, which in turn affects taste perceptions.
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Clean your mouth and tongue often. Before taking a meal, you may brush your teeth and tongue with a soft toothbrush, and resume this operation more often than just after taking a meal.
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Rinse your mouth several times a day, You can use the mouthwash recipe below:
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Eat a lot of different foods: Try different foods and flavours or drinks. - Make a list of foods that taste good to you. Try new foods or different brands that you don't eat usually - Experiment with a new recipe or product brand different. - Alternate bites from different foods and textures during the meal. For example, buffet-style foods can give you more variety, texture and smells to try
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Choice of foods: Choose foods that taste good right now, even if that means eating the same foods every day for a while.
- Chew well: Chew each mouthful of food thoroughly for at least 5 minutes. In addition to keeping food on your tongue and palate for a longer time and hopefully make you taste the food more, this helps ensure that no injury will be caused to your digestive tract. It is worth remembering that the thickness of some guts of the intestine is equivalent to the thickness of an intestinal cell
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Little by little: Eat small meals and snacks throughout the day. The first bites can taste normal, but the taste may change. Eating often, will help your body perceive taste changes more often, which will improve the sense of taste too.
Mouthwash recipe:
- Dissolve 1 teaspoon (15 ml) of baking soda in 2 cups of lukewarm water (500 ml)
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Pour the solution into a bottle with a lid or cap (like a water bottle) and store it at room temperature.
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Use the rinsing solution at least 6 to 10 times a day, after brushing your teeth which normally follows a meal, after flossing, and once between meals.
What type of taste changes do you have and want to reduce ?
A) Metallic taste:
Avoid foods with a bitter or metallic taste like red meat, coffee or chocolate.
• Eat cold or room temperature foods. Some people may also tolerate frozen fruits such as frozen grapes, melon and oranges.
• Try different protein foods with mild flavours like chicken, turkey, tofu, dairy products (milk, cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt), alternatives to cow's milk (cow's milk soy or coconut milk), tuna, salmon, legumes (bean, lentil and pea soup) and eggs (eggs, omelette or quiche).
• Marinate meat, chicken and fish. Use marinades like lemon juice, sweet and sour sauce, wine, teriyaki or soy sauce, Italian dressing or barbecue sauce.
• Use plastic utensils or chopsticks rather than metal utensils to eat.
• Use glass cookware rather than metal pots and pans enamel coated for cooking or food storage.
• Replace canned foods and drinks with fresh or frozen foods.
• Use apple sauce, mint jelly, red pepper jelly or cranberry sauce when cooking with meat or poultry.
B) Overly sweet taste: Dilute drinks with water, milk, sparkling water, tonic water or ice. • Add a pinch of salt to reduce the sweetness.
C) Too salty taste: Try a variety of products low in salt or sodium.
• Add a pinch of sugar or honey to help mask the salty flavour.
• Use herbs and seasoning instead of salt to season foods (thyme, parsley, oregano, basil, garlic, ginger, cinnamon, peppered lemon)
D) Bitter taste : Sprinkle a little sugar, maple syrup or honey on food or add it to liquids.• Eat sweet fruits with meals or sweet condiments like chutney, ketchup, mint jelly, barbecue sauce or apple sauce.
• Drink ginger water or mint tea with meals.
• Suck on a sugar-free mint candy
E) Bland or no taste: Add acidic or tangy foods or liquids to your diet to stimulate the taste buds.
When you don't fell at all, the tastes, you can focus on the colour, texture, smell and taste memory of the food.
• Consider getting to a social environment. Some may find it helpful to eat at home before to attend social events. Others might eat more by talking to their friends and their family.
• Do not smoke when eating.
• Avoid too much alcohol, when eating. Alcohol can cause dry mouth and worsen taste changes and make your brain inhibit to the taste also.
. • Consider food as medicine rather than pleasure, for times when Taste changes are at their worst.
• Consider eating distractedly or with “mindless eating” (e.g., eating while watching TV or chatting)
If you have a “cotton mouth” feeling, try foods with a sour taste following. This can help stimulate your taste buds and increase saliva:
- Lemonade, iced tea, juice, plain yogurt or sour cream
- Pickles
- Sweet and sour sauce
- Sugar-free gums or sour candies
Follow up with your doctor if:
- You have persistent taste changes, which prevent you from being able to eat adequate amounts.
- You have other side effects, such as nausea and vomiting, which may affect you prevent eating and drinking.
- You lose weight without knowing why.
- Your choice of foods has been limited for a long time, and you may need to take a supplement of several vitamins or minerals
We hope that our few tips will be beneficial to you, and we wish that you will have a better sense of taste. Enjoy your life.
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