Question:
Foods/Liquids taste altered...bad, items smell foul

I am 9 weeks post op lap rny and everything I eat or drink tates altered and bad. Common things smell bad. This is making eating and drinking difficult and induces nausea. Any words on if this is common, will it go away, and how much longer will it last. This is making recovery very hard, it is my biggest complaint.    — Val M. (posted on August 31, 2001)

August 31, 2001
I believe this is fairly common. I remember walking down the aisle at the grocery store with all the incense and perfumed candles when I was about 1 week post op, I thought I was going to pass out the smell was so overwhelming. The worst problem for me was water. I recommend you try bottled waters until you find one you can tolerate. I still can not stand any water from the tap. Also play with the temperature, I think it tastes better really cold. However, if it's too cold it irritates my pouch. I will say this diminished slowly as the weeks went by, but I'm still very sensitive to smells.
   — kcanges

August 31, 2001
Welcome to my world Val. I've asked this same exact questions a couple of times...lol. I'm about 3 months post-op now, and unfortunately it still continues. My surgeon has not been too helpful in explaining, but others here have helped. Your body is probably in ketosis right now, because of the quick fat burning that is going on. That leads to bad breath, affected taste buds, and as it's the same system, probably the bad smells too. God...I can't stand the smell of coffee, and I swear to all around that I have a "carbohydrate nose" because if I smell anything horrible, I search it out, and by god it's always a carb. Lol. I THINK that things are getting a little better for me now. And others said that it would go away around 6 months. It's hideous though, because I can't enjoy the foods that I like. I feel okay about eating so small a portion, but I want to enjoy what I eat!! Right now any enjoyment in food is gone, and that has had me eating very little. So I'm with you Val...hopefully things get better for us. I can't imagine something like this is long-term, what would be the cause? Maybe after the weight loss slows down, and you leave ketosis, that's when things get better. Best of luck!
   — Tracy L.

August 31, 2001
One of the interesting phenomena related to RNY surgeries is that the vast majority of patients report changes in their food likes and dislikes, as well as an increased sensitivity to food odors. These changes also seem to vary widely from patient to patient. I (and the other members of my family who have had this surgery) have actually found the changes to be pretty helpful because they have kept me completely away from foods that were very harmful to me pre-op. I cannot tolerate any foods that are fried or greasy...neither the texture nor the smell. My husband and daughter were big milk drinkers and ice cream eaters....now they can't stand the taste or the smell of those items, and my daughter doesn't tolerate red meat now no matter how it's prepared. Some of the issues that you are having with taste and smell could be related to the process of ketosis....the body rapidly burning its own fat stores...and can be alleviated somewhat by increasing your fluid intake as much as possible. I can tell you that the sensitivity to odors improved gradually during the first 6 months post-op and is hardly ever an issue now for any of us (6-17 months post-op). We just accepted these changes as part of our new eating lifestyle and don't fret about it. In the big picture, giving up certain food items is not such a big trade-off for never feeling hungry and not having food control our lives anymore. Best of luck to you!
   — Diana T.

September 2, 2001
At ten days post op, I am driving my family NUTS with my complaints of the SMELL of everything! I suddenly despise perfume, the smell of shampoo, conditioner, deodorants, fabric softener, sweets, and the list goes on and on. (uh, thats NOT to say I dont bathe..I DO, but now have to use unscented stuff!) Lisa in NY
   — Lisa G.