Rediscovering Flavor: A Practical Guide for Smell Loss

In the wake of COVID-19, almost 25% of the population exhibits an impairment of the olfactory system, with varying severity from total loss (anosmia) to partial loss (hyposmia) to deception in odor quality (e.g. parosmia, phantosmia). As smell is the dominant contributor to flavor perception, it’s no surprise that one of the leading causes of depression among those suffering from olfactory impairment is the loss of enjoyment and pleasure in eating. This portion of the population is largely left in the dark as to how to advocate for themselves and to improve their everyday experiences at the dining table.

Rediscovering Flavor: A Practical Guide for Smell Loss is the first practical handbook on olfaction to date that is designed for lay readers and scientists alike. It offers individuals with anosmia a resource for more deeply understanding their condition, as well as a wealth of recipes designed specifically for the reintroduction of multisensory pleasure into the eating experience. Readers will thus gain an understanding of the underlying processes behind how flavor is built, allowing them to develop an approach to enjoyment of food by recruiting all aspects of flavor apart from olfaction. 

This volume also offers practical insights into topics such as how best to discuss your experience with a treating physician, and the potential benefits of a stay at a smell and taste clinic. A primer on treatments and protocols will further explore the concept of the unique plasticity of the olfactory system, and olfactory training (a clinically relevant treatment). Specific culinary reactions (e.g. Maillard reaction) and techniques that can be utilized to stimulate the flavor system will also be introduced.

Rediscovering Flavor: A Practical Guide for Smell Loss integrates the most recent science in olfactory research and flavor perception and presents cooking techniques and recipes offering the renewed possibility of experiencing the enjoyment of food, to those who miss it most.

Thomas Hummel, M.D.
Dr. Thomas Hummel is head of research in chemosensory systems at the Smell and Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Technische Universität Dresden, Germany. His work spans clinical and research efforts on olfactory and gustatory dysfunction, including neurodegenerative-related smell loss. He has played a key role in developing widely used olfactory function tests, such as Sniffin’ Sticks and taste strips. He received most of his education at the Departments of Pharmacology at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg and the University of Iowa, and at the Smell and Taste Center, University of Pennsylvania. He also led the influential “Position Paper on Olfactory Dysfunction” in 2017. Before entering Medical School, he was running a restaurant in Amberg, Germany, for one and a half years, serving the second best Schnitzel in town!

Robert (Bob) Pellegrino, PhD, DSc
Dr. Bob Pellegrino is an assistant professor of sensory science at Texas A&M and an affiliated scientist at the Monell Chemical Senses Center, specializing in smell perception and loss. With doctorates in Food Science and Medical Research, his work spans multisensory integration in eating, smell disorder diagnostics, and olfactory perception. He helped develop the widely used Scentinel diagnostic test and collaborates with the national Smell and Taste Center on cooking for those with smell loss. He also serves on the leadership team for the Global Consortium of Chemosensory Research (GCCR). He also consults for many beverage and food companies on product development and does food pop-ups around Knoxville, TN and Philadelphia, PA.

Alexander Wieck Fjaeldstad, M.D., PhD
Dr. Alexander Wieck Fjaeldstad is a rhinology surgeon and olfaction researcher working in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark. He co-founded the Flavour Clinic at Goedstrup Regional Hospital, Denmark’s first clinic for taste and smell disorders. He focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of olfactory disorders. He is a co-founder of the Flavour Institute at Aarhus University. He is also a member of the Center for Eudaimonia and Human Flourishing at the University of Oxford. Since 2019, he has been running a project on cooking schools for patients with smell loss, with a main focus on methods for regaining pleasure in eating and cooking despite smell loss. The tested methods and recipes from this project have been added to this book. During medical school, he worked at a cocktail restaurant, where cocktails were paired with food to enhance the sensory experience.