Recovering from Anosmia for Covid-19 Patients; Experts' Tips
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16 July 2021 13:29 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Food technology expert from the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB), Daisy Irawan, shares tips for Covid-19 patients who suffer the loss of smell and taste or known as anosmia. It is one of the most common symptoms of coronavirus infection.
Daisy explains anosmia will likely lead to loss of appetite, while nutritional intake must be maintained so that patients can quickly recover from the disease.
She opines that styling food can stimulate appetite. “Prepare more colorful food with various vegetables, or make them in various forms,” she said in a virtual class on food, Thursday, July 15.
“You can also make juice of fruits with edible skins, of course [the skin] must be cleaned first,” she added, explaining that although it tastes bitter, the antibacterial and antiviral compounds in the fruit's skin can increase body's immunity.
Daisy went on to say that people who are sick usually have a bitter taste on their tongues. To overcome this, she suggests reducing the salty taste in food or, if necessary, not using salt.
In a virtual forum of the University of Indonesia’s Medical School (FKUI) last month, an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist, Mahatma Sotya Bawono, said there has been no standard guideline to help restore the ability to smell and taste in Covid-19 patient thus far.
However, Mahatma underlined stimulating the sense of smell, such as sniffing a different scent every day, for example, lemon, essential oils, coffee, and others, can promote healing from anosmia. “The success surely depends on the severity of anosmia,” he said.
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MOH KHORY ALFARIZI