What is it like to not be able to taste and smell?

You probably know what Shahi Paneer, Chicken Tikka and Gulab Jamun taste like.

Delicious, aren’t they?

And they smell just as good too.

But there are millions of people in the world who can’t smell or taste.

Wonder what that’s like? Let us tell you.

Quite a few of us “got a taste” of.. Well, not being able to taste.. and smell due to Covid.

If you were one of the unlucky ones, you know how disorienting it can be.

Meat eaters report that it can feel like chewing leather.

Candy can feel like biting down on crunchy pebbles.

Paneer can.. Well, paneer feels like paneer!

The point is that there are millions of people in the world who suffer from taste and smell disorders - from partial to complete inability to taste or smell.

Smell disorders

• Hyposmia: partial loss of smell
• Anosmia: complete loss of smell
• Parosmia: some or all things smell odd

Taste disorders

• Hypogeusia: partial loss of taste
• Ageusia: complete loss of taste
• Parageusia: some or all things taste odd

These disorders can happen for so many different reasons that it is often difficult to pinpoint a reason.

Common causes:

• Smoking
• Gum disease, poor oral hygiene, or other dental problems
• Ear or head injuries
• Respiratory infections (like COVID-19)
• Radiation Therapy

People often take these disorders lightly, or may even joke about it.

But they can have serious implications.

People almost always stop eating normally. They will either eat too much because they feel unsatisfied. Or they eat too little because... well, they feel unsatisfied.

Also, when someone can’t taste and smell, they may eat food that has gone bad.

There may be non-food-related problems too - like not being able to smell hazards such as something burning or leaking gas.

Unfortunately, there is no universally accepted treatment. Doctors will typically look at your lifestyle and medical history to try to identify the cause, and fix it.

For instance, if you’re a smoker, there’s a good chance your ability to smell will return when you quit smoking.

And that will be sweet!