Welcome Vernon,

Unfortunately, there isn't much that can be done in regards to taste until after treatment, and you begin recovering. That could be in phases. I say at 3 months, 6 months, a year and two years, I noticed significant changes in taste, eating ability, and it progressively improved, but I still have some altered taste, but work around it, and can say I can taste most everything since I avoid those I don't, like sweet, can't chew or swallow. I assume you are having Chemoradiation, both which kill fast acting cells like your taste buds, and nerve invertation to transmit taste signals to the brain, and the nausea, certain smells, taste can be off putting from treatment. I used canned nutrition during my treatments to avoid some issues, so maybe that helped. A number of factors that may lessen the severity of taste loss are taken into account, and there are some proactive, reactive measures that can help.

It depends on the amount, and location of radiation, and the type, amount of chrmo, and assume you are having Cisplstin, If the salivary glands are spared or have reduced radiation, and if being radiated on one or both sides of the head and neck that one side of the salivary glands still produce saliva, which is also integral in taste.

Keeping the mouth clean, well hydrated will help improve taste, brushing the tongue, treating any mucocitis, which is likely to occurr, and thrush, a fungal infection, can cause bad taste in the mouth. Avoiding foods that are too hot, taste better, and not to cause injury, as well as spicy, sharp textured, and acidic foods. The typical rinse of salt water, baking soda will help, and my last treatment I used NeutraSal, a prescription powder rinse you mix with water to help with mucocitis and dry mouth. I also had my mouth sprayed daily at the radiation center to get any gunk out, and both improved my taste, helped with mucocitis, and controlling thrush after I had to use a Nyststin swish and swallow rinse.

Improved saliva will help with taste by chewing gum, drinking water, milk replicates saliva, sugar increases saliva, but then there is the cavity issue. Drinking lemon water, smelling lemons, hard citric candy produce saliva, as well as OTC, and prescription medications to improve saliva.

Fat increases taste, and with sugar, you want to eat more, and is why it's in most junk food, and also canned nutrition.

Zinc may help with taste, but right now, it may be irritable to your tongue, so ask your doctor.

Even with all this, I didn't even try many of these, and just did my time knowing I would have taste again, which took time. I would order like 10 dishes to see what I could eat, go to a buffet, which saves money too instead of cooking and wasting it.

Another thing, taste involves more than just eating. It involves seeing, smelling. hearing, texture, and memory, besides taste which include 6 tastes, not 4, to include salt, sweet, sour, bitter, umami, and mouth feel, from fat. Use all these when ready to improve your taste.

I hope this helps, and good luck.