Hi
I had a stroke in September 24 and since then most food tastes foul. I hoped it would improve. I am eating apples by the lorry load as that’s one thing that actually tastes like it should… It is really getting me down. How long will it last? Will it ever get back to normal? are questions I ask myself daily. I am wondering if I should see my doctor.
Thanks for reading.
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@jenn it is very difficult to say if your taste will return to normal or how long it will take. It may be worth speaking to your GP. My advice is to try & eat lots of diffetent foods, even if they taste wrong, so that your brain gets used to them & cab start to rewire yiur taste buds. Hope your taste comes back soon.
Best wishes
Ann
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My favourite drink has always been coffee but while in hospital I developed a loathing for it.
Someone suggested drinking chocolate, and for some time it was what I drank morning noon and night.
When the hospital menu for the next day came around I picked food that sounded good and was what I liked. Next day I’d push it around the plate with no appetite whatsoever. All that I could manage were jelly, ice cream, a banana or other fruit.
When I got home again I eventually regained my appetite, once more enjoying a cup of coffee and my old favourites.
Stroke plays some very strange tricks on you, but given time you begin to get your life, changed a bit, back again.
Sharing the story does help put things into perspective and lets you find that you are not alone dealing with this stuff.
keep on keepin’ on
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Hello @jenn sorry you have to go through this, Are you on anti epileptic drugs? Sometimes these meds change the taste of food.
Keep trying different healthy food items so you find your taste as right eating is important for healing.
Please take care.
My Positive thoughts for you.
-Neha
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The only thing I noticed was that all wine tasted like vinegar for a couple of years (which saved me a few bob!). I’m back to normal now, but don’t drink wine as much as I used to.
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Hello.
My taste was ‘off’ for a few months after the stroke then came back ok. More recently, and 19mths post stroke, I’ve noticed I can’t always taste as well as I did, but on the other hand, sense of smell is getting stronger as that diminished almost to nothing. So as taste and smell are connected, I’m still hoping (expecting, even!) for both senses to sort themselves out eventually. Unfortunately, there’s no solid answer as our strokes are all individual but I do hope it’s not too long before your taste returns to normal.
Trace
SIG
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@jenn
I also suffer from taste problems since stroke May 23. I had some phone calls from a stroke dietitian who told me in her experience most people’s taste returns.
However no sign of this happening at all for me , everything tastes vile. I would say carrots and digestive biscuits the only things remotely familiar. 
I miss a nice cup of tea so much!
Social meals are difficult , I have just learned to chew and swallow and pretend!
Sorry I can’t give better news , maybe we will be lucky and our normal taste will return one day.
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My husband had a haemorrhagic stroke late Nov 24. He was tube fed for the first month. When he went on to proper food in hospital it all tasted dreadful. He went off tea, coffee and most foods. He said it all tasted the same. He lost 2 stones in weight and they gave him energy drinks. The turning point was when someone sent out for fish and chips and treated him. He said they were fantastic.
When he came home mid March he ate everything I put in front of him. Hospital food is shockingly bad.
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Like everything post stroke recovery of taste is varied. It took the best part of year for taste to return. Being diabetic it was a bit of a predicament for me as the medication I’m on virtually eliminates appetite altogether. Needless to say I lost too much weight, but thankfully its back to normal now 
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I can relate to this as since my mini-stroke 7 months ago I have lost the pleasure of chocolate. i used to enjoy the occasional chocolate bar, but now it’s something I don’t enjoy. I’ve had chocolate several times since, but each time the taste I experienced before has gone.
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I have had this problem since my stroke in May 2024. Most things taste awful and I live on weetabix, potatoes, cheese and soda bread with a once weekly very thin steak. I can also eat white fish , pineapple and berries. For treats I have all butter shortbread biscuits and a small square of dark chocolate. My problem is further complicated by a heightened sense of smell so I can’t stand people cooking in the house. Saw my consultant for my first check up today and he said he’s not heard of it before, he did some research while I was there and found a small study that said 30% of people having strokes can suffer from it. This study stated they had some success with a medication called Carbamazepine so he has prescribed me a small dose for 28 days to see if it helps. I’m going to gat it tomorrow I and I will report back on here. Failing that he said it can take up to 2 years for everything to settle down. It’s very depressing as I can’t enjoy family meals and can’t go out to eat as the smells in pubs and restaurants make me retch.
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@Miffy257 be interesting to hear how you get on with the medication. It may help others too if it works.
I found some things tasted vile after my stroke but it wasn’t everything so I managed ok. It did settle but still happens occasionally. I had a heightened sense of smell initially too & found it very strange as my sense of smell has never been great. Suddenly I could smell food cooking, smell flowers, perfumes etc. That seytled for me too & I’m now back to my previous level of not being able to smell very much.
Strange things our brains.
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@Miffy257 that’s interesting my taste is still vile after 2 years. It’s horrible to live with it. I’ll be very interested in how you get on with Carbamazepine
I’ve never heard that before, thanks for sharing .
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There’s going to be a lot of people on here watching your post to hear how you get on with this medication 
It certainly took about a year for my sense of taste to return and I lost way too much weight in the process 
Fortunately I had no issue with my sense of smell though.
Lorraine
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I will definitely up date people on my progress, sounds like there needs to be some more research into this aspect of stroke recovery.
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We will be interested too. Since my earlier post my husband has gone off his food big time again. I enjoy cooking and make him all sorts of nice food but he just eats tiny bits. He even refuses fish and chips which he used to love. He says everything tastes the same.
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Hi Jenn,
I rarely want to eat anymore and now favour textures over taste…I used to like lots of food but now I’m not that fussed. Worst part is if you suffer from fatigue it starts cravings for energy. My favorites also changed, can’t eat liquorice anymore I used to love it, from dark chocolate to white…spicy is good but I just don’t get flavours like I used to. Everything is just ok😂
Regards,
Dan
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My partner is going through something similar, he can only taste sweet and spicy foods. Everything else tastes fairly bland, so he adds a lot of hot sauce to it to give it some flavour.
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Just wanted to post that
The Carbamazepine had absolutely no effect on my taste problem and I am still finding most foods taste awful still, absolutely fed up with potatoes and although I keep trying different foods there is no improvement whatsoever. I think I’ll just have to wait and see if time improves the situation. My consultant said he’d refer me to the nutritionist in the stroke team but I have heard nothing so far. It really gets me down at times as I’m missing out on social events as there is no point going if I can’t eat and often the smells of food in restaurants and cafes makes me retch.
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Damn, that is so disappointing. Get your gp to also refer you to ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) to check if anything there could be causing the issue.
Lorraine
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