Lost taste buds

Erna

The Living Force
Hi, a very strange thing has happened to me this week. Firstly, I couldn't taste any salt, and kept throwing more and more salt on my food, until I realised I couldn't taste salt any more at all. I thought I might have burned my tongue maybe, and that it would come back. I could still taste sweet until this morning, now I can't taste anything sweet as well.

Drank some lemon juice, to check for sour. Nothing. Gone!!

I literally can't taste anything at all. Food is like cardboard to me. Since I know of course what something should taste like, it's very frustrating to me.

The only thing I'm doing out of the ordinary at the moment, is that I'm taking Nystatin for candidiasis. I Googled Nystatin for any such side effects this morning, but nothing of the sort is mentioned.

I did however see many people report the same thing in other places. Some get their taste sensation back after months, and some never do.

Some only lose salt, some only sweet. Some lose all.

I'm a little alarmed by this.
 
Can you move all the muscles in your face? Like when you wrinkle exaggeratedly your eyes, your forehead, or show your teeth as in smiling, everything moves?
 
I would be alarmed myself! I would say that you need to see a doctor but I'm not sure a U.S. doctor is the best kind to see. Perhaps an acupuncturist or a naturopath?
 
This site: http://www.merckmanuals.com/home/sec19/ch221/ch221j.html suggests that Zinc supplements might help.

Check this one out also:
http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/biosi/staffinfo/jacob/Anosmia/anosmia.html
 
[quote author=Psyche]
Can you move all the muscles in your face? Like when you wrinkle exaggeratedly your eyes, your forehead, or show your teeth as in smiling, everything moves?
[/quote]

Yeah, everything's working just fine. I did exactly this this morning, when I saw somewhere online that it might be a neurological disorder, and could be the first signs of that condition where the half of your face just goes numb/lame.

I can fortunately move all my face muscles just fine.

Laura said:
I would be alarmed myself! I would say that you need to see a doctor but I'm not sure a U.S. doctor is the best kind to see. Perhaps an acupuncturist or a naturopath?

Yeah, I'm definitely going to see someone if this continues. After Googling some more, I saw that it happens to a lot of people. Approximately 2 million Americans lose their taste sensation per annum!

I don't have flu or anything, I feel great.

Two things I have every day in excess, is Rooibos tea and stevia, could that have caused this maybe? I'm basically considering everything I'm taking in now + a change of tobacco recently.
 
E said:
After Googling some more, I saw that it happens to a lot of people. Approximately 2 million Americans lose their taste sensation per annum!

I don't have flu or anything, I feel great.

Two things I have every day in excess, is Rooibos tea and stevia, could that have caused this maybe? I'm basically considering everything I'm taking in now + a change of tobacco recently.

That is so weird. Perhaps a good acupuncturist might be able to help you.

It seems that other than zinc and copper, vitamin A and vitamin B2 (riboflavin) helps as well in loss of taste.
 
It is very unusual to loose sense of taste selectively, there are actually 4 basic senses of taste - sweet, sour, salt and bitter. Are you sure you cannot taste only salt?
I remember reading somewhere sometimes that loss of taste for salt could be associated with chronic zinc deficiency.

I hope it is something trivial like this or perhaps you are coming down with cold, as very often loss of smell can precipitate loss of taste.

Take care E, investigate this properly and keep us informed.
edit: posted in the same time as psyche - so zinc was already covered
 
I've been taking a zinc/copper supplement on and off over the past few months, but I'm going to go buy more today, as well as a vitamin A supplement. I've also been taking a B complex on and off - so I'll get back to taking it every day.

Herr Eisenheim, I did seem to lose salt first, because I tested several things, then I lost sweet, sour and bitter - it's been really strange. I do notice that as I swallow, right at the very back of my tongue, I still get a very faint taste sensation - but it's so faint and quick that it's not really 'taste'. Considering how I over salt my food and over-sweeten with stevia my tea, I'm wondering if it hasn't been coming on for a while. Thanks for all the responses, and I'll keep you updated on any changes.
 
E said:
Herr Eisenheim, I did seem to lose salt first, because I tested several things, then I lost sweet, sour and bitter - it's been really strange. I do notice that as I swallow, right at the very back of my tongue, I still get a very faint taste sensation - but it's so faint and quick that it's not really 'taste'.

That is interesting, because the taste in the back of the tongue is innervated by another nerve (glossofaryngeal - IX cranial nerve). The first 2/3 is innervated by the facial nerve (7th cranial nerve) through its branch called the chorda timpanae (sp?).

You haven't had inner ear problems nor any recent infections?

Well, these nerves can be affected by inflammation or infections. Taste loss could be also due to local causes like dryness, toxicity (mercury?), etc. Other imbalances are a possibility. It doesn't seem you've been nutritionally deficient, but I will take those supplements because they don't cause harm and they could definitely help you right now.
 
I have been having ear issues in the past. When we went diving for the first time, I struggled with equalizing under the water, because my ears were blocked. Since then, I always go to an ear/nose/throat specialist before we go diving. Went to one as well just before I came to the states, and he cleaned my ears, but said that otherwise, everything's hunky dory.

Since then, my left ear became blocked again recently. No pain or anything, just blocked. I made a note to go to that specialist again soon.

I'll be sure to take those supplements you recommended as well, and see if there's any improvement. Thanks Psyche.
 
The ear problem could also be a fungal thing. I had ear problems for years and years. I had a constant prescription for cortisone ear drops and repeatedly took antibiotics without resolution. Ten years or more. Then, one day I had the idea that it might be fungal - candida. I suggested this to the doctor and he pooh poohed it. So, no help there. Then, a bit later, my dog developed an ear problem and I took him to the vet. The vet took a specimen, went to his microscope, came back and said "fungal" and prescribed anti-fungal ear medicine. So, there I was with this anti-fungal ear medicine in my hands and a conviction that my own ear problem was fungal... so, yeah, I put a few drops in my own ear every time I put it in the dog's ear and we both got well.

Later I developed severe vertigo which was probably due to stuff floating around in my inner ear. That was fixed up with a special positional treatment though it bothered me off and on for awhile. Since the detox and diet, it seems to have disappeared entirely. (I did a couple courses of nystatin and fluconazole).

Recently, Burma Jones developed an ear problem and said he had it off and on for years and regularly had to go get his ears cleaned out. We tried the ear candles and antibiotic without much improvement, so then he began snizzling nystatin and it cleared up almost right away.

I really don't know why human doctors are not trained to take specimens and do an immediate analysis and determine if it is possible that fungi are involved. They have a knee-jerk reaction to the very idea that human beings harbor fungi and that those fungi can cause serious problems.
 
Laura said:
I really don't know why human doctors are not trained to take specimens and do an immediate analysis and determine if it is possible that fungi are involved. They have a knee-jerk reaction to the very idea that human beings harbor fungi and that those fungi can cause serious problems.
Yea I was always wondering about this considering that in dogs Malassezia (yeast sp.) is the most common ear and skin infection.
I had significant dandruff problem through most of my teenage years and have seen at least dozen dermatologists. They mostly prescribed steroids. At this time ketokonazole was not yet invented or available. Then I learned that ketokonazole can be used on dogs for Malassezia infections when Nizoral shampoo just appeared on the market. Tried it on myself and solved the problem that was persisting for 10 years.
All I need to do now is use it once or twice a year, In the fall and spring time.
 
Yes, Nizoral is a good thing to use while dealing with yeast anywhere else in the body.
 
Oh my! I hope you get better soon E!

Here is my uneducated guess based on what you've written, and with a big FWIW because I have no idea, really:

You have big candida/fungus overgrowth. Before it only affected your ears. When you started the Nystatin course, that triggered fungus overgrowth, which as I understand, it's a normal reaction when fighting Candida which defends itself. As that happened, you started losing your taste buds. Now, if you were to do what Burma Jones did, and attack the fungus locally and directly, maybe that would clear a bit. If I were you, I would try doing that.

Big hug!
 
DMSO is also anti-fungal. A teaspoon in a glass of water every two or three days could help a lot.
 
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