Taste and smell often return over weeks or months, and smell training, nasal care, safer eating habits, and time can help recovery.
Losing taste after COVID can feel strange in a way that’s hard to explain until it happens. Meals go flat. Coffee turns dull. Foods you used to crave can seem like cardboard, metal, or nothing at all. That shift can drag down appetite and make daily life feel off balance.
The good news is that many people do get better. In a lot of cases, the problem is not a full loss of taste buds. It’s a loss or distortion of smell, which does much of the work behind flavor. When smell starts to recover, taste often starts to feel fuller too.
This article walks through what can help, what tends to slow recovery, what warning signs deserve medical care, and what you can do at home right now.
How To Regain Sense Of Taste After Covid And Why Smell Matters
When people say they “can’t taste,” they often mean food has lost flavor. That usually points to smell loss rather than a full taste disorder. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders notes that true taste loss is less common, and many people who think they have a taste problem are dealing with smell loss instead. NIDCD’s taste disorders page explains why food seems bland when aromas cannot reach the nose.
That link matters because it shapes what recovery looks like. If your nose and smell pathways are still irritated after COVID, your meals may taste muted even if your tongue can still sense sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. As smell improves, flavor often starts to return piece by piece.
COVID can also change smell rather than wipe it out. Some people notice smoke, onion, coffee, meat, or toothpaste smelling wrong. That can make flavor seem warped too. Recovery is often uneven, so a better breakfast does not always mean dinner will taste normal the same day.
What Recovery Usually Feels Like
Recovery is rarely one clean switch from “off” to “on.” A more common pattern is small gains. You may notice texture first, then basic tastes, then stronger foods, then aroma. Some days will feel better than others.
A few people regain taste within days. Others need weeks or months. The NHS says smell changes after illness such as COVID may improve in a few weeks or months, and the CDC still lists new loss of taste or smell among COVID symptoms. CDC symptom guidance also notes that symptom patterns can vary.
What You Can Do At Home
You cannot force nerve healing, but you can give recovery a better shot. The best home steps are simple, steady, and safe.
Start Smell Training
Smell training is one of the most used home methods after viral smell loss. The idea is to sniff a set of familiar scents twice a day and pay close attention while doing it. This repeated practice may help the smell system relearn and reconnect.
Try four distinct scents, such as lemon, rose, cloves, and eucalyptus. Smell each one for about 15 to 20 seconds. Pause between scents. While sniffing, think about what that scent used to smell like. Do this morning and evening for months, not days.
University College London Hospitals describes smell training as twice-daily sniffing of four essential oils and notes that it has helped people improve smell in many studies. UCLH’s post-COVID smell and taste page gives a plain summary of that method.
Keep Your Nose Clear
If you are still dealing with congestion, a blocked nose can make flavor loss feel worse. A gentle saline rinse may help if swelling, mucus, or allergy-type irritation is part of the problem. Even a small improvement in airflow can make smells easier to detect.
Use only clean saline products or a properly prepared rinse. If you already use a nasal spray for allergies or sinus trouble, stay on the plan your clinician gave you. Don’t stack random sprays in the hope that more is better.
Wake Up Flavor During Meals
Food can feel more satisfying when you build meals around contrast. Lean on temperature, texture, acidity, sweetness, saltiness, and crunch. Cold fruit, warm soup, tart dressings, toasted nuts, and crisp vegetables can make eating feel less flat.
Also try rotating foods instead of forcing the same bland meals. If eggs taste sulfur-heavy or coffee tastes foul, switch to foods that still feel tolerable for now. That does not mean those foods are gone for good.
Protect Nutrition While You Wait
Loss of taste can shrink appetite fast. That becomes a problem when you start skipping protein, fluids, or full meals. Keep eating on a rough schedule even if hunger is weak.
- Pick easy proteins like yogurt, beans, eggs, chicken, tofu, or cottage cheese.
- Add sauces, citrus, herbs, and texture if they still feel pleasant.
- Use smaller meals more often if full plates put you off.
- Track weight if you’ve been eating less than usual.
- Drink enough water, especially if dry mouth is making flavor weaker.
Steps That Tend To Help Most
Not every tactic works for every person, but these are the ones most often worth trying first.
| Step | How To Do It | What It May Help |
|---|---|---|
| Smell training | Sniff 4 familiar scents twice a day for 15 to 20 seconds each | May improve smell recovery over time |
| Saline rinse | Use a gentle saline rinse if congestion or irritation is present | May improve airflow and aroma detection |
| Texture contrast | Add crunchy, creamy, cold, and warm foods in the same meal | Makes eating more satisfying when flavor is dull |
| Acid and herbs | Use lemon, vinegar, fresh herbs, and mild spices if tolerated | Boosts mouthfeel and brightness |
| Meal routine | Eat at set times instead of waiting for hunger | Helps prevent under-eating |
| Food swaps | Drop foods that taste foul and return to them later | Reduces nausea and frustration |
| Weight check | Watch for unwanted weight loss over a few weeks | Flags when intake is too low |
| Home safety | Check smoke alarms and food dates more closely | Lowers risk when smell is weak |
What Not To Do
It’s easy to get desperate and start trying everything at once. That usually adds stress without giving you a clear sense of what is helping.
- Don’t keep eating foods that make you gag just because they used to be favorites.
- Don’t use harsh homemade nasal mixtures or random oils inside the nose.
- Don’t smoke or vape if you can avoid it; both can irritate the nose and mouth.
- Don’t ignore weight loss, dehydration, or a sharp drop in food intake.
- Don’t assume all flavor loss is “just COVID” if new nasal blockage, bleeding, or one-sided symptoms show up.
When Taste Changes Need Medical Care
Many people can start with home care and patience. Still, some patterns should push you to book a visit sooner.
See A Doctor If Recovery Stalls
If your smell or taste has not started to return after a few weeks, it’s reasonable to get checked. The NHS says to see a GP if smell does not go back to normal in a few weeks. A clinician may look for sinus trouble, nasal polyps, medication effects, oral issues, or other causes that can mimic post-viral loss.
Go Earlier If You Have Red Flags
Book care sooner if you have one-sided nasal blockage, frequent nosebleeds, severe sinus pain, head injury, new hearing or nerve symptoms, or a bad metallic taste that will not let up. Those signs may point to something other than routine post-viral recovery.
If you also have active COVID symptoms with chest pain, trouble breathing, blue-gray lips, or new confusion, treat that as urgent. The CDC lists those as emergency warning signs.
Foods And Habits To Try While You Heal
The goal is not to “fix” the nerves with one food. The goal is to keep meals workable, pleasant, and steady while recovery happens in the background.
| Problem | Food Or Habit To Try | Why It May Feel Better |
|---|---|---|
| Food tastes flat | Citrus, pickles, yogurt, vinaigrette | Acid can make meals feel brighter |
| Meat tastes off | Beans, eggs, tofu, fish, dairy | Lets you keep protein intake up |
| Coffee smells foul | Tea, cold brew, or skip it for a while | Some roasted foods trigger distortions |
| No appetite | Small meals every 3 to 4 hours | Less pressure than large plates |
| Dry mouth | Water, sugar-free gum, moist foods | Moisture can make flavor easier to sense |
| Bland texture | Crunchy toppings, toasted bread, nuts | Texture adds interest when flavor is weak |
What To Expect In The Months After COVID
Progress can be slow, then suddenly easier to notice. You may first pick up stronger odors like citrus, mint, garlic, or soap. Then subtle food aromas may return. Some people pass through a stage where smells are distorted before they settle down.
That weird middle stage can be frustrating, but it does not always mean recovery has stopped. It can mean the smell system is healing in an uneven way. Keep routines steady and give changes time to settle before deciding a method failed.
If your taste and smell changes are lasting beyond the first phase after infection, they can also fit within longer post-COVID symptoms. That does not mean you are stuck this way for good. It does mean a clinician may need to rule out other causes and help shape a plan.
Daily Plan That Is Easy To Stick To
A simple routine beats a complicated one you quit after three days.
- Do smell training in the morning.
- Clear your nose with saline if congestion is part of the problem.
- Build meals around protein, texture, and bright flavors you can still tolerate.
- Repeat smell training at night.
- Track changes once a week, not every hour.
That last step matters. Recovery is easier to spot over weeks than over single meals. Keep notes on scents you can detect, foods that taste normal, and foods that still seem wrong.
References & Sources
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD).“Taste Disorders.”Explains that many people who think they have a taste disorder are dealing with smell loss, which helps explain flavor loss after COVID.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).“Symptoms of COVID-19.”Lists new loss of taste or smell among COVID symptoms and outlines warning signs that need urgent care.
- University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH).“Loss Of Smell And Taste (Post-COVID Service).”Describes smell training with four scents twice daily and summarizes why it is commonly used after post-viral smell loss.