Curious about "Senses Returning" Post-Smoking

[Starcadia]

How much snus flavor are ex-smokers actually tasting? Those of you who smoked a significant amount over many years, has your tastes in snus and other things evolved as your senses of taste and smell return? Or is the process too slow to really notice?

I still think losing those senses to cigarettes is a myth. Probably because I smoked for twenty years and don't remember what life was like before that. Still, I never put salt on food, and can smell just fine. I suppose it's an issue of relativism.

[itchystiches]

Er, can't say I've noticed any increases in taste, although my sense of smell has improved significantly.

Peace!

[KarlvB]

Without a doubt....

I notice it the most with very subtle flavours or notes - wines, whiskey and umami rich foods

And of course with snus

I would be interested to hear if you still feel that your sense of smell and taste wasn't affected once you've been off cigarettes for four or five months..

[eli]

I know that my sense of smell has definitely improved and along with that comes an improvement in the taste of food. It's not that I couldn't taste food (or needed a lot of added salt, which after a certain level no longer enhances flavor but just makes food salty) I'm noticing more subtle flavors in snus (and in coffee, tea, wine, fine chocolate, etc...) It's not a drastic difference but it's there.

[chainsnuser]

Yeah, it's not that you lose all you sense of taste as a smoker, but you lose a great deal. I also thought this was a total myth, but I soon realized that it isn't.

For me the difference happened within a week of non-smoking. My favorite cheap milk-chocolate suddenly tasted like finest dark chololate. My favorite kind of apples suddenly tasted much sweeter. It was almost frightening. I even thought about smoking again, no joke.

Just recently I discovered that fresh maize can actually taste sweet like a cake-mixture.

The changes didn't happen that intense with every kind of food, but with many.

My taste of smell is even much more enhanced now.

Fortunately I got used to the new taste nuances and smells quite fast. And I'm still salting almost everything, even my favorite brand of vegatable juice, that already has a salt-"warning-label" on the bottle.

Cheers!

[Asquar]

I haven't had a cigarette in a little over 3 months, and my sensory capacities are about the same. Who knows? Everyone is different.