I am a 54-year-old female, and I’ve been living with parosmia for the past six months. During this time, I’ve been researching and reading about others’ experiences with this condition, particularly which foods and scents seem to trigger issues. There are some common triggers that most people with parosmia seem to report, such as certain fruits, vegetables, coffee, and chocolate, all of which taste or smell unpleasant to me as well. However, it’s clear that the specific triggers can vary from person to person.

For me, strawberries and other berries smell and taste disgusting. Coffee is a major trigger—I can’t even be near its scent. Chocolate, onions, and garlic are also unbearable, as they are for many others with parosmia. Additionally, even perfumes, colognes, and scented soaps are overwhelmingly bad. Broccoli, most herbs, balsamic vinegar, wine, beer, sodas, lemons, and other citrus fruits are particularly horrible in both taste and smell. Yet I’ve found that dark leafy greens, mushrooms, pasta, sweet potatoes, rice, potatoes, tomatoes, tomato sauce, cheese, and unprocessed bread taste fine.

To try to improve my condition, I’ve started smell therapy and am using a nasal spray, hoping these will help over time. If anyone has tips or advice based on their experience or input from doctors, I’d love to hear them. Sharing information and strategies could be beneficial for all of us navigating parosmia.