I was brushing my tongue regularly and it was desensitizing my taste buds. My taste improved a lot when I stopped that practice. All of us respond differently. I like hot spicey foods and have no problems with salsa or peppers. I was pounding down the Cokes too but quit that when the hygenist warned me about increasing the frequency of my cleanings. At 3 1/2 years, my sweet tooth has returned and I love ice cream, sundaes, chocolate, etc. It seemed like it took a long time to get it back together. My salivary function is good enough that I can spit and lick envelopes. The Parotid near the tonsil was wiped out though (because it was directly in the radiation field) but you have 5 salivary glands.