The sense of taste

[Guest guest]

In TCM the sense of taste is linked to the health of the Spleen system. People

whose spleens/ Spleens are in good shape have a good sense of taste and readily

can discern different flavors.

 

When the person is having trouble tasting, consider and rule in or out problems

in the Spleen system.

 

Sometimes people may not be aware that their sense of taste is messed up. I

wasn't. In past years I used to snack on sour cream flavored potato chips and

cheddar cheese popcorn. (Not a good choice because of the dairy for someone with

Phlegm problems, but there was a lot I didn't know back then.) I thought the

manufacturers of the products were really cheap when it came to the seasonings

because I could barely taste it. As it turned out, my sense of taste was way

off. As it began to improve, I realized that the manufacturers hadn't been cheap

with the flavoring, my sense of taste had been way off.

 

In Western medicine, a poor sense of taste or no sense of taste often is linked

to zinc deficiency. I was on zinc supplementation because of its role in immune

system functioning, and this is a mineral that is highly recommended for people

who have mononucleosis (attacks the spleen) and CFIDS (Chronic Fatigue Immune

Dysfunction Syndrome). At the same time the zinc was helping to start clear up

the chronic mono infection, it also was restoring my sense of taste.

 

Unfortunately, zinc supplementation can be tricky in people who need it the

most. The digestive system frequently is messed up in these people, and as a

result, the zinc supplementation can trigger more stomach pain and problems. I

never was able to find a form of zinc that got around this problem. But, as my

overall health and the state of my digestion improved, the problem faded.

 

Zinc deficiency often is a cause of anorexia or eating too much. If a person is

having trouble tasting food - even if the person doesn't realize the sense of

taste is off - this can result in the person either having no appetite or

feeling hungry all the time. The usual manifestation is that the person will not

feel hungry, but occasionally you will see people who go the opposite way. As

zinc levels are restored to normal, the appetite will become more normal in both

cases.

 

You may recall that one of the symptoms of Spleen problems is that the person

has a poor appetite.

 

Zinc deficiency and Spleen problems are not the only two factors that can result

in appetite problems, but they are two that need to be considered and ruled in

or out.

 

Building zinc levels back up to normal and restoring the sense of taste with

zinc can take several weeks or months when zinc supplementation alone is used. I

don't know if also using TCM knowledge will help shorten this time period. Back

in those days I wasn't using TCM, just mineral and vitamin supplementation, and

it did take several weeks before I realized that my sense of taste had been off

and was returning to normal. Too much zinc can be toxic, so this is not a

mineral that you want to take a lot of at one time. Also, it takes time for the

body to start to build back up so that it can make full use of the zinc.

 

In some people low zinc levels have been linked to both undeweight and

overweight because of its effect on the sense of taste. Underweight and no

appetite is the usual manifestation though cases of overwieght and hungry all

the time, not being satisfied by food occasionally manifest.

 

Zinc supplementation has been used successfully in treating some cases of

anorexia nervosa. I suspect that the function of the Spleen system via TCM may

also need to be considered in these people.

 

Victoria

 

 

 

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