Fix for dead taste/smell?

[foodog]

I had been vaping for about 16 days and had that dreaded loss of taste/smell that seems to be pretty common. Wasn't sure if it was not smoking cigs, vaping or what, but it lasted two weeks -- and was pretty annoying. I had just got in a *whole bunch* of juice, samples, etc. and couldn't taste/smell ANYTHING! At this point I was about 35 days into vaping and decided I had to try a fix.

I had a theory it was related to the pH level in the mouth. Smoking causes an acidic environment, and I believe vaping does too. So, I began taking antacids, doing a baking soda gargle every two hours, and a saline/baking soda sinus rinse.

So it seems like the baking soda rinses FIXED IT! I was doing a baking soda gargle every two hours for about 6 times and a sinus rinse with one of those neti pots (added a bit more soda to the salt mix). That evening there were hints of the taste returning. The next morning, I could smell and taste at about +75%.


I'll keep an eye out for other people reporting this problem and suggest the baking soda fix -- need more evidence this actually works before calling it some kind of cure. But, this is awesome right now, so glad to get it back.

 

[Robino1]

Yay! Nothing more frustrating then losing those taste buds. Also, vaping really strong flavors (Cinnamon) for too many days in a row, will hurt your taste buds. I am going through that one now.

Slowly getting them back after vaping cinnamon too many days in a row. Drink lots of water too. Vaping will dehydrate you.

 

[bigbigpops]

Just get trucking. You will get over it.

 

[Dorfmunder]

Oh wow, I am going to try this! I have been vaping for 8 months with CHRONIC tasting issues and have tried every other trick in the book. Most of the time I only catch a faint hint of flavor and the rest of the time I taste absolutely nothing (even with super strong flavors). I get to where I don't even get the cool sensation from mega strong menthol juice that I mix myself. It's such a bummer.

This is a theory I hadn't heard of yet and I'm going to give it a try, thanks!

 

[LTV1]

I rinse my mouth with cold water every few hours besides drinking water. No issues.

 

[mcaz]

I'll give it a shot next time my taste buds are off kilter. Happens every so often.

 

[foodog]

So, I need more reports of this fixing/not fixing the problem to know if it fully works. If it works, post results please...

One person confirmed it fixed the problem partly after 24 hours, and almost 100% after 48 hours. I also found calcium carbonate 420mg pills may help. The real key here is if your tongue is irritated like you ate too much lemon (texture, burned a bit), you may have low pH and need to correct it. Also, rinsing sinuses with some baking soda/saline might be the real key, but be sure to use distilled water and clean/microwave everything real well so you don't end up with a sinus infection from the rinse.

 

[Anthrax-VX]

wow that is pretty interesting, never heard of that lol

 

[Renolizzie]

I just kept on vaping even though I could barely taste anything. I might try that if I go through a no taste dry spell.

 

[adeline]

Just a random FYI... If you're having trouble tasting things other than your vapor (food and drinks), have a look at your bottle of mouthwash.

There's a chemical they put in mouthwash (normally the non-alcohol kind) called cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) that has been known to kill taste buds (and turn your teeth brown) in a small percentage of the population.

I used Crest Pro-Health mouthwash TWICE and lost my sense of taste COMPLETELY for 24 hours.

 

[Dorfmunder]

I'm checking in to report! I was in the midst of a spell of having absolutely no taste, so was a good time to test this out. I brushed my teeth & tongue with straight baking soda, then did a baking soda rinse a few hours later. Not much difference yesterday.

Today I did the same and am getting a bit of flavor! I'll definitely check in again with more results, but think you are onto something.

I am not one that gets past dead buds over time and the best I get is muted flavors. This is chronic for me after 8 months of vaping. The only reason I know that it's muted is because the first couple weeks I vaped were amazing and I haven't had that since. My guesstimate is that I taste about 25% on my good days and absolutely zero (including atomic fireball, prothol, etc) on bad ones. I switch flavors around and drink water all day and can hardly tell a difference between them.

 

[flowerchild]

Im gona go buy some baking soda and give it a whirl, couldnt taste anything all last night even after cleaning teeth and drinking gallons of water. Thanks for the heads up

 

[DMAudio]

I'm pretty sure there'a a company called 'Arm and Hammer' that make a baking soda toothpaste.

DM

 

[someone3x7]

Interesting. I'll have to try this myself the next time my taste-buds go. Thanks.

 

[Dorfmunder]

This is absolutely 100% working for me! I had dead buds all day, did a baking soda rinse after brushing my teeth and I'm tasting much more. I never got this after brushing my teeth alone. What I've been using for a rinse is a couple tablespoons of baking soda in my bottle of Biotene. Using that alone didn't help either, so it has to be the baking soda. Genius. Thank you so much!

 

[bubbadreier]

Good to know! I will have to try this next time!

 

[zoomin31]

I think I am gonna give this a try thanks for the tip.

 

[MiMoSeTH]

I have to bump this thread so other people with the same problem can try this, since i'm glad to say it's also working for me.

Like Dorfmunder, most of the time i hardly tasted anything i vaped even if i could smell the liquid perfectly. I was a 2 PAD smoker before switching to vaping and i kept vaping at the same pace, so the OP explanation makes sense.

After 4 days doing baking soda rinses, i can now feel some flavor, and i'm confident it'll get bettter if i keep at it.

Many, many thanks for this find

 

[JP Mick]

Wow that is bizarre. I've found that I can taste a little better after getting off of the analogs. If I lost my sense of taste I would be SCREWED as I am a chef and my sense of taste and smell are very important to say the least.
Could this be attributed to one juice and not another? Or body chemistry?

 

[MiMoSeTH]

Oh, don't get it wrong, we are talking about tasting the vapor itself, not about tasting or smelling food or drinks.

Like i said, i've been able to smell the liquid in the bottles perfectly fine, but vaping it i was tasting nothing most of the time.

This method fixes tasting the vapor.