treatment making food tastes horrible any suggestions??

hello, everyone !!

my husband says everything he tries to eat has a horrible taste . He has tried just about everything with no luck . It's horrible he is so hungry ,I'm not sure if this is from the erbitux or the radiation, he is almost to the half way point. If anyone out there has any suggestions it would be much appreciated. also, how long after treatment will he get his taste back?? Godbless each and everyone here, in Christ Jesus.

melrosa

Hi Melrosa,

I suggest very bland items with an acceptable texture.  Hi calorie drinks are also very good - you want to try drinks with the most calories with the least volume, for obvious reasons.

I could tolerate eggbeater omelets (with cheese and sometimes ham) and 2 Boost Plus, with tea and honey, for 3 meals per day.  I used the magic mouthwash just before eating to numb my mouth and throat.  I also used tylenol-codiene mixture for general throat pain.

Anyway, everything else I ate was repulsive, and I couldn't have made it without my bland, but fairly high calorie meal.

Best wishes,

Chris

Melrosa,

       As Chris mentioned, anything that your husband can get down that has a high calorie count and easy to swallow.

       Unfortunately, everything that we eat during our treatments taste like  cardboard or aluminiun cans. Hopefully, he hasn't lost the sense of smell. I didn't and it helped a little bit as I would think and remember how it once tasted as I ate different things.

       Try mixing up different shakes. I would use some ice cream, a banana, and some instant breakfast mix. Trying to increase the calorie intake and nutrition. I also had a Peg Tube if I couldn't swallow on different days. Each can of nutrition had roughly 275 calories, so I was getting some protien in, etc. Like Chris mentioned, Boost, Ensure, or even the Store Brand. I liked the Strawberry flavor and the Chocolate.

       It isn't easy, but he will need to force himself to eat, a task that is much easier said than done when you don't feel yourself.

       My Best to You Both and Everyone Here

Hello,

    I am one year out of treatment, erbitux and radiation.  Eating , for me, is a challenge at times because I never know whats going to taste ok.  My taste changes daily.  My doctors have told me it is all a matter of time and each person is different.  This may be as good as it gets,  it may get better.  I know a lady 9 years out of treatment and she still can't taste well at all.  Another person I know, 3 years and all his taste has returned.  Matter of each individual.  Just hang in there.  It's a frustrating experience, but you have to eat.  You just have to be more selective and careful.  If I were to put my taste on a scale of 1-10, I would probably be around 5.  But that isn't saying you will do any worse.  I don't know.  Be patient and do what you got to do.  It's tough, but I am cancer free and consider this to be  a fair trade. 

My husband had radiation treatment (external and internal) for base of tongue cancer 2 years ago.  He also experienced that everything he tried to eat tasted horrible.  He had a feeding tube that he eventually had to use because his pain was too bad to swallow.  about a month after the completetion of  treatment, he came off the feeding tube, and slowly his taste buds came back.  Bitter ones first then others slowly followed.  He is 2 years out and is happy to report that his taste is back almost 100%.  It also helped that he never smoked or chewed.  good luck to you and your husband 

Yes, taste is a big issue. I stopped eating early in the treatment and relied on the PEG but afterwards when I started trying to eat again, it all came down to acceptable texture and consistency because taste was either terrible or nonexistent. 9 1/2 months later I have some taste but nothing like the old normal and it not only changes daily but pretty much dissipates after a couple bites of something. The key is you have to eat for survival, especially where he is now, so anything he can get in is good, and the higher calorie the better so he has to take in less of it if the taste is unpleasant. You kind of have to suspend any expectation of taste or enjoyment, and just take stuff in to sustain the body. The chemo and radiation both create a metallic taste, and the radiation messes up the taste buds. The metallic taste will depart, the taste buds will recover to some extent but it's hugely different for everybody how long it will take and how much they'll recover. At least with the PEG you can eat/drink without worrying about swallowing and tasting so you can survive the treatment and get to the recovery end of things.