Foods That Help Get Your Taste Back After Illness or Treatment

January 13, 2026 •

4 min read

According to the Cleveland Clinic, people who have ageusia, or a complete loss of taste, due to a cold or flu typically regain their sense of taste after the infection resolves. The good news is that certain foods can help expedite this recovery process and stimulate taste receptors to get your taste back, making meals more enjoyable during a difficult time.

Quick Summary

This guide provides practical strategies and food recommendations to help restore a diminished or altered sense of taste. Learn how to stimulate taste buds with specific foods, enhance flavor perception, and address underlying causes of taste loss to make eating more pleasurable.

Key Points

Zinc Intake: Ensure adequate zinc consumption through foods like oysters, red meat, nuts, and legumes, as deficiencies can impair taste and smell.
Stimulate with Sour and Tart Flavors: Use citrus fruits, vinegar, and pickled foods to boost saliva production and stimulate taste receptors.
Incorporate Pungent and Spicy Foods: Experiment with ginger, garlic, and chili peppers to activate different sensory nerves, providing a sensation even if taste is dull.
Utilize Umami-Rich Ingredients: Focus on savory umami flavors from sources like mushrooms, soy sauce, and aged cheese, which are often more perceptible during taste loss.
Vary Textures and Temperatures: Compensate for lost flavor by introducing a mix of crunchy, soft, hot, and cold foods to engage other senses during a meal.
Prioritize Oral Hygiene and Hydration: Maintain good dental hygiene and stay well-hydrated to ensure taste buds are functioning optimally and to prevent dry mouth.
Try Olfactory Training: Engage in smell training using aromatic compounds like essential oils to help retrain your brain's connection to certain flavors.
Consult a Professional: If taste loss is severe, prolonged, or accompanied by other symptoms, see a healthcare provider to diagnose and treat any underlying conditions.

Understanding the Causes of Altered Taste

Before exploring which foods can help, it's essential to understand why your taste might be off. Taste perception is a complex process involving both your taste buds and your sense of smell. Many factors can disrupt this process, from viral infections like the common cold or COVID-19, to chemotherapy and aging. Nutrient deficiencies, particularly a lack of zinc, can also play a significant role in altering your sense of taste. Understanding the root cause is the first step toward finding a solution.

Zinc: A Crucial Mineral for Taste

Zinc is a trace mineral vital for the proper function of your senses of taste and smell. A deficiency can lead to a diminished sense of taste, but increasing your intake of zinc-rich foods may help.

Zinc-rich foods to add to your diet:

Oysters: Among the richest sources of zinc, a few oysters can provide a significant portion of your daily requirement.
Red Meat and Poultry: Beef, lamb, and chicken are excellent sources of bioavailable zinc.
Legumes: Chickpeas, lentils, and beans are good options, especially for vegetarians, though the zinc is less bioavailable due to compounds called phytates.
Nuts and Seeds: Cashews, pumpkin seeds, and hemp seeds offer a good zinc boost.
Dairy Products: Milk, yogurt, and cheese contain readily absorbed zinc.
Eggs: A single large egg contains a small but helpful amount of zinc.

Harnessing Flavor to Retrain Your Taste Buds

When your taste is muted, relying on strong, distinct flavors can help stimulate and retrain your taste buds. This process, known as olfactory training or taste bud retraining, involves consciously focusing on and savoring different tastes.

Sour and Tart Flavors Sour and tart foods stimulate saliva production, which is essential for transporting flavor molecules to your taste buds.

Citrus Fruits: Lemons, limes, and oranges add a bright, fresh acidity to any dish.
Vinegar: A splash of apple cider vinegar, balsamic, or red wine vinegar can awaken your palate.
Pickled Foods: The tang of pickles or kimchi can provide a strong sensory experience.

Spicy and Pungent Flavors Spicy foods activate different sensory receptors in your mouth, sometimes perceived even when taste is impaired.

Ginger: Known for its strong aroma and pungent flavor, ginger can help stimulate the senses.
Garlic and Onion: These aromatic ingredients add depth and intensity to dishes, even when boiled.
Chilies and Capsaicin: For those who can tolerate it, the heat from chili peppers can provide a powerful sensation.

The Power of Umami Umami, or the savory taste, is often more resistant to loss and can be a powerful tool for enjoyment.

Mushrooms: Sautéed mushrooms have a rich, savory umami flavor that can elevate many dishes.
Soy Sauce: A salty and savory condiment that can add significant flavor.
Tomato Paste: A concentrated source of umami that can be added to sauces and stews.
Aged Cheeses: Parmesan and other aged cheeses are packed with umami.

Comparison of Flavor-Boosting Foods

Here is a comparison of different food categories that can help with taste recovery:


Food Category	Primary Function	Example Foods	Notes
Zinc-Rich	Support taste and smell nerve function	Oysters, red meat, legumes	Corrects deficiencies; foundational for recovery.
Sour/Tart	Stimulate saliva flow and receptors	Lemon, lime, vinegar, pickles	Provides a sharp, activating flavor profile.
Pungent/Spicy	Activate non-taste sensory receptors	Ginger, garlic, hot peppers	Creates a powerful, non-taste-dependent sensation.
Umami	Provide deep, savory, complex flavor	Mushrooms, soy sauce, aged cheese	Often remains perceptible when other tastes fade.
Texture-Rich	Engage non-taste sensory input	Nuts, crunchy vegetables, granola	Adds a satisfying mouthfeel to compensate for lost flavor.
Aromatic Herbs	Boost flavor through smell	Basil, mint, cilantro, rosemary	The sense of smell is crucial for flavor perception.

Practical Tips for Improving Your Eating Experience

Beyond specific foods, several strategies can help make meals more pleasurable and aid in taste recovery.

Varying Textures and Temperatures

Changing the texture and temperature of your food can make a significant difference. If flavor is lacking, the tactile experience can become more important. Combine crunchy and soft foods, or hot and cold elements, to engage more of your senses. For example, add crunchy toasted nuts to a creamy soup or have chilled, flavored yogurt.

Enhancing Aromatics

Much of what we perceive as taste is actually smell. If your sense of smell is intact, you can use aromatic herbs and spices to enhance the flavor of your food. Use fresh basil, cilantro, or rosemary generously, or add flavorful spices like curry powder. Smell training with essential oils like lemon, clove, and eucalyptus can also be beneficial.

Oral Hygiene and Hydration

Maintaining good oral hygiene is crucial for proper taste function. Brush and floss regularly, and consider brushing your tongue to remove food debris that might interfere with taste. Dry mouth can dull taste perception, so staying hydrated by drinking plenty of water throughout the day is essential.

Conclusion: A Multi-Faceted Approach to Taste Recovery

While a diminished sense of taste can be frustrating, a multi-faceted approach can be very effective in restoring it. By incorporating zinc-rich foods to address potential deficiencies, experimenting with strong flavors like sour, spicy, and umami, and consciously engaging other senses like smell and touch, you can retrain and stimulate your palate. Remember to prioritize oral hygiene and hydration to support the process. For persistent or severe taste loss, it's always best to consult a healthcare professional to rule out underlying medical conditions. With patience and a little culinary creativity, you can rediscover the joy of eating and help get your taste back.

Authoritative Source

MD Anderson Cancer Center: Lost your sense of taste or smell? 8 tips for eating well

Frequently Asked Questions

Taste loss can be caused by viral infections (like colds, flu, or COVID-19), aging, head injuries, certain medications, radiation therapy, and nutrient deficiencies, particularly zinc.

For common infections like the flu or COVID-19, taste usually returns in one to three weeks as you recover. However, the duration can vary depending on the severity and underlying cause.

Yes, zinc is crucial for the senses of taste and smell. A deficiency can lead to a diminished or altered sense of taste, and increasing intake of zinc-rich foods can often help.

While some people prefer bland food, experimenting with intensely flavorful options like sour, spicy, and umami foods can help stimulate taste receptors and retrain your palate.

This can be a side effect of medication or cancer treatment. Try using plastic utensils instead of metal and rinsing your mouth with a baking soda and water solution before meals to neutralize the taste.

Using strong spices like chili or ginger will not damage your taste buds. The powerful sensory input can help stimulate your senses and make eating more interesting. Just be mindful of your personal tolerance.

Yes, because taste and smell are closely linked, olfactory training can be very effective. This involves repeatedly smelling different potent scents like lemon and clove to help rewire the brain's processing of smells and, by extension, taste.