Cases where the sense of smell and taste lost due to COVID-19 were restored thanks to 'specially flavored chewing gum'
A man who lost his sense of smell and taste due to COVID-19 has reportedly regained them after chewing a specially developed, extra-strong flavored chewing gum for several years.
Study Details | NCT07498062 | Multimodal Chewing Gum Flavour Training to Aid Flavor Perception Recovery - a Pilot Study. | ClinicalTrials.gov
Chewing gum restores dad's taste and smell years after Covid - Discover SWNS
https://discover.swns.com/2026/05/chewing-gum-restores-dads-taste-and-smell-years-after-covid/
One of the symptoms of COVID-19 is a decrease or loss of the sense of smell and taste, and some people lose their sense of smell and taste for a long period of time even after recovering from COVID-19. Paul Wicks, a 44-year-old doctor living in Staffordshire , England, and a father of two, also suffered from a loss of smell and taste for several years after contracting COVID-19 in August 2022.
Mr. Wicks said, 'I lost my sense of smell and taste during the pandemic, and they never came back. I couldn't smell anything when taking out the trash or changing diapers, and it was sad not being able to smell. Memory formation is influenced by smell. The smell of birthday cake, the smell of my dog, the smell of childhood mementos, and so on. I was worried that I wasn't able to create good memories with my wife and children.' He spoke of the pain of losing his sense of smell and taste.
In November 2024, Wicks participated in a groundbreaking clinical trial designed by Dr. Nicole Yang of the University of Nottingham. This trial involved chewing gum that had been intensely flavored to stimulate the sense of smell and taste, twice a day, morning and evening, for 12 weeks.
Regarding the clinical trials, Wicks stated, 'Dr. Nicole Yang's theory was that to train your taste buds to distinguish flavors, you have to actually eat food. This chewing gum is specially formulated to retain its flavor longer, and the flavor actually changes as you chew it. These flavors are blended to target a variety of combinations, including sweet, salty, sour, refreshing menthol, and spicy tastes.'
Mr. Wicks, who participated in the clinical trial, continued chewing gum in the morning and evening, but for the first few weeks he didn't notice any changes. However, six weeks after starting, when he ate a blueberry in his oatmeal for breakfast, he felt an explosive burst of sweet flavor. 'For the first time in years, I could taste something in my breakfast,' Mr. Wicks said of that moment.
A few days later, Wicks became convinced that a change was actually happening when he ran over dog poop with his lawnmower. 'The smell of dog poop and cut grass stimulated my senses. That gave me hope that something was working. Over the next six weeks, I could taste food again, smell my kids' hair after a shower, and even smell my own deodorant,' he says.
Ultimately, 67% of the 16 participants in the clinical trial reported an improvement in their sense of smell, and 83% reported an improvement in their sense of taste. Dr. Yang's research team is now seeking funding to proceed with larger-scale clinical trials.
As of the time of writing, Mr. Wicks' sense of smell and taste have returned to their pre-COVID-19 state, and refilling his coffee maker with beans has become a weekly pleasure. 'When you lose something and then get it back, you really appreciate its value. You literally stop and smell the roses,' he said.
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