CHECK-UP:A tasteless disorder could be solved by eliminating certain medications, writes MARION KERR.
I NEVER gave much thought to my sense of taste until I lost it. Can you explain how we taste things?
Taste is controlled by our chemical sensing system. The process of tasting begins when tiny molecules released by the substances around us stimulate special cells in the nose, mouth or throat.
These cells transmit messages through nerves to the brain, where specific tastes are identified. Gustatory or taste cells in the mouth react to food and beverages and send taste information to their nerve fibre.
The taste cells are clustered in the taste buds of the mouth, tongue and throat. We can usually identify at least five different taste sensations: sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami – the taste elicited by glutamate.
In the mouth, these tastes, along with texture, temperature and the sensations from the common chemical sense, combine with odours to produce our perception of flavour. Flavours are primarily recognised through our sense of smell.
I’m just getting over a cold and my taste has not been right since. Could this have caused the problem?
A reduction in the ability to taste is usually caused by conditions of the tongue. Dry mouth, heavy smoking and side effects of some drugs can lead to problems with taste.
Upper respiratory infections such as colds, flu or lung infections can cause some chemosensory loss.
While some people are born with chemosensory disorders, most develop them after an injury (such as a head injury) or illness.
Loss of taste can also be caused by exposure to certain chemicals such as insecticides and by some medicines.
Disorders of taste may result from oral health problems or by some dental or ear surgeries.
Many patients who receive radiation therapy for cancers of the head and neck develop chemosensory disorders.
In Bell’s Palsy, the sense of taste can be lost on the front two-thirds of one side of the tongue – the side affected by the palsy.
Can taste disorders be treated?
If a certain medication is causing a taste disorder, stopping or changing it may help eliminate the problem. Taste problems that result from respiratory infections or allergies often settle when the illness resolves. Often the correction of a general medical problem can also correct the taste loss. Occasionally, recovery of the chemosenses occurs spontaneously.