Long COVID: Loss of smell or taste - NHS inform

Information on how to help loss of, or change in, smell or taste due after having coronavirus (COVID-19) Long-termeffectsofCOVID-19 ShowLong-termeffectsofCOVID-19Navigation Home Long-termeffectsofCOVID-19(longCOVID) Signsandsymptoms Signsandsymptoms LongCOVID:Lossofsmellortaste BritishSignLanguage(BSL)  | العربية  | বাাংলা  | 简体中文  | 繁體中文  | دری  | فارسی  | हिन्दी  | پښتو  | Polski  | ਪੰਜਾਬੀ  | Română  | slovenčina  | Español  | اردو  | Audio  | EasyRead Afterhavingcoronavirus(COVID-19),youmaystillhavealossof,orchangein,senseofsmellortaste.Itcantaketimeforyoursenseofsmellortastetorecover.Youmayfindthatfoodssmellortastedifferentlyafterhavingcoronavirus.Foodmaytastebland,salty,sweetormetallic.Thesechangesdon'tusuallylastlong,buttheycanaffectyourappetiteandhowmuchyoueat.Foraverysmallnumberofpeople,yourchangeofsenseofsmellortastemaybemorelong-term. Whatyoucandotohelp It'simportantnottocompareyourselftoothers.Everyone'srecoveryisdifferent. Youmayonlybeabletosmellortastealittle,oryoumayfindcertainsmellsortastesunpleasant.Youmayexperienceabadsmellallthetime–forexamplesmellingsmokeorpetrol. Do learnaboutyourconditionfromtrustworthysources eatcoolorroomtemperaturefoods takesmallmouthfuls–don'tgiveuptooquicklyasyoumaygetusedtothetaste tryblandfoodslikerice,boiledpotatoesandpasta tryflavoursthatappealtoyou keeptryingthings–whatyoulikecanchangefromweektoweek keepyourmouthcleanandhealthybybrushingyourteethmorningandevening rinseyourmouthwithwaterifitfeelsdryoruncomfortable makesureyoueatenoughproteinlikebeans,pulses,fish,eggs,meatandotherproteins tryaddingstrongflavoursorspicestohelpwithtaste–thoughdon'taddtoomuchsugarorsalt Readabouttherecommendeddailyintakeofsugar andsalt Smelltraining Smelltrainingmeansregularlysmellingdifferentthingstorelearnthem.Itcanhelpsomepeoplegettheirsenseofsmellback.Ifyoucansmellthedifferencebetween2differentthings,smelltrainingmayhelpyou.Thisincludesifyoucanonlysmellafaintdifference.Theearlieryoustartsmelltraining,themoreitmaybeabletohelp. Startwithitemsyouhaveathomelikecoffee,perfumes,citrus,ordifferenttypesofessentialoils.Learntoidentifythesewithpracticeandthenmoveontoanewscent. Trysmelltraining Losingsmellmayhavepracticalsafetyconcerns–forexamplegas,smoke,outofdatefoodandpoorventilation.Ifyoudon'thaveasenseofsmell,it'simportanttobeawareofthese.Youmightwantto: visuallycheckyourcookerisoff makesureyouhaveaworkingsmokealarm checkexpirydatesonfood Readfurtherinformationaboutlossof,orchangein,senseofsmell Non-urgentadvice: SpeaktoyourGPpracticeif: yoursymptomsarenotimproving yoursymptomsareaffectingyourdaytodaylife you'reworriedaboutyoursymptoms youalsohaveothernasalsymptomslikeblockednose you'reworriedaboutpossiblelongCOVIDsymptoms inachildoryoungpersonunder18 Source: ScottishGovernment-Opensinnewbrowserwindow Lastupdated: 09March2022 Howcanweimprovethispage? HelpusimproveNHSinform FeedbackAlertTitle Feedbackdisplaymessage,thisandthetitlewillbeoveridedbyJavascript Don’tincludepersonalinformatione.g.name,locationoranypersonalhealthconditions. EmailAddress [email protected] Message Maximumof500characters Sendfeedback Otherlanguagesandformats BritishSignLanguage(BSL)  | العربية  | বাাংলা  | 简体中文  | 繁體中文  | دری  | فارسی  | हिन्दी  | پښتو  | Polski  | ਪੰਜਾਬੀ  | Română  | slovenčina  | Español  | اردو  | Audio  | EasyRead AddthispagetoInfoForMe AlsoonNHSinform Foodandnutrition EatwellGuide:Howtoeatahealthybalanceddiet Otherhealthsites FifthSense:Thecharityforpeopleaffectedbysmellandtastedisorders NoseWell:Recoveringfromlong-termCOVID-19smellandtasteloss CloseUtilitySlider Long-termeffectsofCOVID-19(longCOVID) AboutlongCOVID Signsandsymptoms Otherlanguagesandaccessibleformats