Loss of taste

Gradually, last week, I began loosing my sense of taste. By Friday, it was totally gone. I came down with an otherwise not too bad cold at the the same time. It is not COVID (already had that, and it was more severe) and my sense of smell is fine. I feel lousy, but not so bad that I can't work. Sinuses are slightly inflamed but not running or sneezing except for a few times last night... not much congestion. Fever is moderate and not constant. But, I can't taste... and I am Judson Carroll and my quality of life is basically a really good palate! I can barely taste salt, at all... brined green olives basically taste like old, really washed out mild black olives. I could not tell a pickle from a fresh cumber! Sweet is very muted. Sour is totally gone - I can't taste lime juice or vinegar. Bitter is muted but still there. Hot sauce is just hot, bit I can't taste peppers, tomatoes, meat, bread... I smell onions but can't really taste them. Spice, like cinnamon and nutmeg smells the same but has little taste. Peanut butter may as well be flour and water! ... please give suggestions! The only thing I can really taste is parsley. It has been almost a week since I have tasted food. Coffee is like 50% flavor.

PS. No dry mouth - secretions are fine

If you have no taste go for texture, old fashioned oatmeal with some honey is a good one for texture.

I would just figure it was Covid again, I know somebody that had it twice. And I know somebody that had it months after getting the shot. It seems pretty prone to reinfections, and its the only thing I know for certain knocks out taste in some people.

I agree about going for texture if taste is gone. Maybe some nice crunchy kale chips, especially since you still can taste bitter. Maybe a cabbage salad with apple and carrot slices, for crunch. I know that when I've been on really bland diets (I spent about two months eating just turkey, lamb, pears, rice and squash), that the thing I missed most was just CRUNCHING into something. The crunch is satisfying, at least for me!

Here's hoping your sense of taste returns soon!

Thanks for the well wishes and advice!

If taste is a moot point, maybe it's a chance to eat the healthiest stuff possible, which may normally be unpalatable to you. Getting the healthiest food in you could also be the best chance of giving your body the materials it needs to repair whatever is causing your issue.

Judson, how did you make out?? Please tell me it eventually came back.
(...I figured someone else here went through this too....)

I can taste bananas and tang (the foodie within me sighs....), everything else tastes like ashes or (if there is milk involved) vomit. I smell cigarette smoke in the weirdest places, every so often something like oranges or mint tea has a ghost of a taste (hallelujah!), but just as often it's simply a blank. cardboard probably has more taste.

I got the creeping crud for what is probably the third time since it all began, the new variant is going around and at least the symptoms were less intense, but i never lost smell/taste before. i'm doing my neti pot and sniffing everything with great enthusiasm, but so far nothing doing. i hope it is just a question of time. in the meantime, i'm eating a lot of bananas and thinking a lot of zen thoughts....

in case anyone is wondering, it came back to about 85%, about a month later. I won't be back to culinary tastings for wine or olive oil anytime soon, but at least I can tell which is which now.
I used my neti pot every day and made a point of spending some time each day with my spice drawer, my essential oil box, my perfumes just to try to get things going.
A few spots are still blank (apparently I can't smell the dog farts... which is kind of nice in a house with two big stinkbags), and a few times I've been upset that I can't taste fruit, only to find the fruit wasn't particularly flavorful (early peaches). Coffee still has no appeal to me, but I'm not a big coffee drinker anyway.
As expected, I lost some weight (no scale here, but all my pants are falling down), but there was some extra hanging around, so no big deal.
All in all: not fun, do not recommend.

For loss of taste, zinc supplementation might help. Zinc is involved in sense of taste as well as immune function and is known to be impacted by upper respiratory infections, including Covid. The recommended dose is 8-11 mg elemental zinc per day and too much may reduce other nutrients like copper, so more isn't better.