paddy Posted June 28, 2004 Share Posted June 28, 2004 Hi There Folks, I need help to find something to take away the awful metallic taste that my David is experiencing . He cannot face food, he is even refusing the things he loves, like his beloved frapachino's and my home-made custard tart!! I tried to get him to have an ensure at lunch time and later found it back in the fridge.I am so afraid that he is going to start losing weight again. He is so fatigued and depressed, (dispite taking 50 mls of zoloft!) and I am at a loss to know what to do for him. He has six more sessions of Taxotere to go so I have to find something soon. I saw something about "Magic Mouth" on this board some time ago. I have searched for that post but cannot find it. Has anyone had experience with this product and if so, does it really work? We have tried "lemon drops" and mouth rinses to no avail. Any help you can give will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Paddy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Wood Posted June 28, 2004 Share Posted June 28, 2004 Paddy, you have to hecome the food Nazi and insist he take nourishment of some kind. I gave Lucie choices, but "nothing" was not a choice. Try different flavors of Ensure and Breeze. Try smoothies and things you blend in the blender. First, he can become dehydrated and this will land him in the hospital. Second, if he loses weight and energy, he will not be able to fight this. Good luck. Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fay A. Posted June 28, 2004 Share Posted June 28, 2004 Paddy, I found Altoids Cinnamon Candies to work best against metal mouth. The Magic Mouthwash is used to numb the mouth and throat so one can swallow, and not for metal mouth. (for those of you who want to try to understand what metal mouth is like, try to bite a crumpled piece of aluminum foil, and imagine that same sensation on all of your taste buds.) Paddy, for me the worst metal mouth I ever had came from my recent try on Zoloft! Also, Ensure has a slightly metallic taste all on it's own, at least to me. I drank Carnation Instant Breakfast and Boost. They were easier for me to handle than Ensure. Just my 12 cents on the subject. (No, I own no stock in the companies that make Carnation Instant Breakfast and Boost.) Another thing I was able to get down were Slimfast Bars....each one contained about 350 calories, vitamins and minerals, but they were small so I didn't automatically balk at a big meal, and they tasted okay, not great, but I could deal with it. Hope David is more like himself over the next few days. My docs told me to avoid my favorite food while on chemo so as not to ruin them for me when chemo was complete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginnyde Posted June 28, 2004 Share Posted June 28, 2004 Paddy, I am with Don, nothing to eat was not an option. I got a lot of 'get off my back' type of comments, but I let them 'slide off my back' because keeping his weight up was more important to me. Stauffers Creamed Chipped Beef over white bread and Vanilla Boost or Ensure (get the Plus variety, more calories) with 3 scoops of chocolate ice cream, in the blender, were the foods of choice. I did a lot of just '1 more bite'. I didn't leave him alone while he ate either, so he couldn't do the old, wrap the broccoli in the napkin trick. This is the time you have to become the big nag, tough but worth the price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhutch1366 Posted June 28, 2004 Share Posted June 28, 2004 Paddy, This is the formulation for magic mouthwash, I'm not sure it'll chase away metal mouth. I had to cope with that for a very long time, and just had to deal with the fact that nothing tasted right for quite a while. From my oncologist: I hope this helps. It helped me an AWFUL lot, because also on and off I also had thrush, which made for really bad mouth sores. My oncologist prescribed this for me when I had difficulty eating post chemo and radiation: Directions: swish and spit about 1 spoonful (fifteen mls) every 30 minutes as needed, esp before eating. (you can swallow it, if you want to...) Mouth rinse: (pharmacist has to make it up) 25 cc of liquid Benadryl, 25 mg/cc stock solution 25 cc of Maalox 25 cc of lidocaine, viscous, 2% solution 25 cc of nystatin liquid. (stock solution) ----------------------------------------- There is also a premix similar to the above available in the Wash DC area by prescription called Gel-claire, but the nurse had no firsthand knowledge of it. Hope this helps... MaryAnn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paddy Posted June 29, 2004 Author Share Posted June 29, 2004 Thank you so much Fay, Don, Ginny and Maryann, it was so nice of you all to take the trouble to write. I think I was beginning to panic when I wrote the first post. I feel a little better after reading your messages. Fay, I am going to try those altoids, and Ginny, the "chipped beef" idea sounds a good one. Dave had actually been gulping down floats for a while, but even those are being refused at present. Don, I read Dave your post and told him that he should listen to you, even if he didn't want to listen to me. Maybe you got through to him as he ate his dinner tonight! Maryann, thank you for that recipe. Like you, I am not sure that it will help "metal mouth", however, I will keep it handy for the other problems you described. Dave had thrush when he was on antibiotic some months back, I wish I had known about it then. Thanks again, Paddy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roseymac Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 Paddy, My husband had the Magic Mouthwash because he had hard time swallowingfrom pain, gosh I know he said it was awful I still have 2 full bottles of it, so I really don't think that is the answer, to get him to want to eat. Maybe if you call your onc's office they can give him something to take the meal taste away. Also as Fay had said the carnation instant breakfast is great, my husband would drink that when he wouldn't eat anything. Rosemary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paddy Posted July 2, 2004 Author Share Posted July 2, 2004 Thank you Rosemary, It was kind of you to take the time to reply. I think I might be close to solving this problem. I had tried lemon drops, but not the "real" lemon juice ones. The nurse at the onc's office gave me a packet of "Anzemet" (dolasetron mesylate injection/tablet) which she gives to people who have chem "ports".( Apparently they often get a metallic taste in their mouths when the meds go in.) Anyway, Dave tried them and they seem to help. I haven't tried purchasing them yet but I think one can get them in a pharmacy. Another thing that helps a bit is for Dave to drink some pure lemon juice before a meal. I will also try the Carnation and see if that helps. I am glad your husband seems to be doing a lot better, Good Luck to you both, Paddy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeR Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 Hi Paddy, My dad had the same problem with the metal taste and not wanting to eat. The oncologist recommended him trying the zinc tablet to help this problem. I think it took about a week of taking the zinc before he noticed any difference, but he soon was enjoying his food again. I was thrilled with the difference this made for him. I hope if you try the zinc it has the same results with your husband. Good Luck! Diane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paddy Posted July 10, 2004 Author Share Posted July 10, 2004 Hi Diane! I bought some Zinc lozenges after seeing your post and we are giving them a try. Thanks so much for your help. Paddy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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