A saltwater rinse, brushing your teeth, or rinsing with seltzer can help reduce unpleasant tastes by clearing out baseline secretions (saliva). It can be helpful to rinse your mouth before meals to cleanse your palate. However, avoid acidic foods if you have mouth sores. If you are experiencing loss of taste, foods with tart flavors like lemon, citrus fruits, vinegar, and pickled foods may be appealing. Better to stop and start again with snacking, than to struggle through a full meal if you are nauseous. Also, small portions may be more palatable than one large meal. This way, you get nutrition steadily throughout the day. Eat Small, Frequent MealsĮat when you are hungry! Have snacks on hand for when the mood strikes you. You may experience fewer adverse reactions to these foods, as they have neutral flavor profiles. Sticking to bland foods can be helpful, as they can taste similar to how they tasted prior to treatment, in many cases. It might be a good idea to save your favorite foods for after your treatment, so that you do not develop an aversion to them.

Instead, see if you can find substitutes for those foods (i.e. And don’t feel like you have to force yourself to eat food that tastes unpleasant. If a food unfamiliar to you smells or tastes good, then try it! In some cases, foods that you might normally dislike may be tolerable. You can try adding different seasonings and sauces to your meals to improve the taste. This is a perfect opportunity to experiment with new foods and flavors. Vincent’s Cancer Journey April 25, 2023.Story Time: Henry Finds Out About Cancer May 12, 2023.Choosing a Cancer Care Team June 20, 2023.

What helps to get your taste buds back