Changed taste preferences?

[Charlotte.]

Hi,

I'm wondering if anyone has experienced changed taste preferences. I don't have the slightest idea where it could come from, it developed within the last months:

I don't have an appetite for sweets at all, was even hard to follow my meal plan that my nutritionist worked out for me, as I was lacking so many nutrients and vitamins from an elimination diet that only left me with very few options that would not provoke any more symptoms. So it was even hard to start eating banana or blueberries again.
I can't imagine eating sweets again at this point, my last piece of dark chocolate was in November 2015.

I don't like large amounts of the same foods, when I have one portion of spelt pasta, I could never have some more of that, instead I need a different flavour afterwards, maybe a slice of toast with cheese etc. if I think I need to eat a bit more to reach my caloric goal.

In general, my appetite has decrease massively within the last, lets say 12 months. Now it's pretty similar to the time when I was a teenager, I could eat and eat and did not gain any weight, probably because I did not eat that huge amounts, started when I felt hungry and stopped when I was full or just felt that it was enough. Before the diagnosis I tended to eat quite large amounts of one certain dish that I had prepared, because it tasted so good and it was hard to stop, now there is no problem at all to stop after one portion. I can't even imagine to have exactly the same meal again after having eaten one portion.
So my fridge now is normally filled with 2-3 different meals that I eat the other day as I cook for a few portions but only want to eat one.
That is so weird to myself, as now it's just like in childhood and the time when I was a teenager.

In addition, my taste prefereces have also changed that I eat more selective. Before diagnosis I ate nearly every vegetable, every fruit, every consistency of things. Now it's much more selective. I like certain vegetables in that way (e.g. cooked) but not in a different way (e.g. baked - or the other way around, just an example), which logically does not make any sense to me to like a certain food only in a very specific way.

This all is so weird to me, so if there is anyone out there who feels the same or has heard of something like this, I will be more than happy to hear of you.

 

[MmeMagpie]

I've developed an unholy obsession with tacos. And not just any tacos. They have to come from Rodolfo's.

 

[Beach]

Change in taste preference is discussed on low carb sights. Once carbs and sugars are limited or avoided for awhile, some report not enjoying sugary products as once was the case.

That happened to me. I've eaten lower carb for awhile. I tried to drink a soda pop and it was terrible I thought, far to sweet.

The same for processed foods in general for me. I notice the high salt amounts in processed foods more than in days when I cared little for what I ate.

I have noticed something odd with my IBD condition. I've been able to become well to the gut a few times with diet ideas in the past. Elimination diets sometimes work for me. Why they sometimes work has remained a mystery though.

Regardless, I'm on an elimination diet at the moment, have the gut working wonderfully, with energy levels improving. I have a theory on why this diet is working, but don't know if the theory is correct or not. I know if this good health continues over time my eye color will change. My eyes are greenish brown at the moment. If I continue to be well my eyes will turn bright blue eventually. And I'll develop a craving for potatoes. I don't know why that is other than my ancestry is part Irish. :ytongue:

 

[Tuff]

That's interesting about the eyes. My eyes used to be blue, and are now green. I want my blue eyes back!

 

[Charlotte.]

Thank you guys for your feedback so far!

Interesting about your eyes!

It's a bit weird to me anyway, as I can't really make up a reason for this overall change, I haven't been a low carber recently (tried it for a few weeks, ages ago, even before diagnosis) and don't crave certain foods instead, it's more a general change in preferred taste and consistency, especially regarding sugar (I can't imagine eating anything sugary, I tried, but I can't swallow it, even the smell is too much already) but also certain vegetables (I loved all vegetables before), even my favourite foods have become something I can't eat at all, even the smell provokes an aversion against that food, e.g. with olives (also with olive paste that should not bother my intestines), cocoa powder, cinnamon (I loved cinnamon), sweet potatoes, carrots,... many more to add.

So actually I don't know what I could enjoy taste-wise, so I mostly google for pictures of meals and see if I could imagine eating this or that, it's super weird. Normally I loved cooking, only watched the vegetables and other foods and my mind came up with a recipe just by itself and of course I enjoyed that meal when it was ready. Now when a meal is ready it sometimes happens that I realise that I don't like the taste at all and sometimes I force myself to eat it anyway or I keep it for later and see if something has changed, sometimes that helps and I eat something else instead and eat that meal later.

In general, it's unpredictable what my appetite tells me.
It's way smaller in general and I sometimes have to eat without feeling hungry. So it is a huge help just following my meal plan that is as balanced as possible, including the biggest variety as possible, always containing carbohydrates, a lot vegetables, protein (mostly animal protein like dairy, fish, egg) and fats (e.g. linseed oil or the fat that is in the protein itself like fish fat etc.). So even if I don't want to eat this or that I just eat it because it's part of my meal plan.

 

[Beach]

It is surprising about my eyes and the color change from green to blue noticed in the past when well. I have to laugh at myself. I'm on eye color watch. I'm constantly looking the mirror at my eyes to see if they are changing. Nothing overly noticeable so far. Drats!

Hope you get to the bottom of the changing food preferences and lack of interest in sugary foods. These IBD conditions effect us all in unusual ways it seems.

 

[Lizzie]

I've lost my craving for sugary food after nine months of cutting it out - it was very hard at first but not so bad now - I don't know whether you'd call that a changed taste preference. Same goes for a lot of food, I used to love eating and was always thinking about food, but now my diet is so restricted I've mostly lost interest.

 

[Charlotte.]

@Lizzie

Thank you so much for sharing, Lizzie! That goes in the same direction, as I was cutting out so many foods in order to minimise symptoms and now kind of have to eat them again, according to my meal plan, but, well, my body seems to have lost interest in any food and even the memory of how good it tasted.
Thank you so much, again!