Small case study of 2 patients, showing significant improvement in taste and smell shortly after one dose of a turmeric supplement. Authors note that the risk of one dose is low in healthy individuals not on medications metabolized by cytochromes P450, and the potential benefit is high.
Chabot et al., 8 Sep 2021, peer-reviewed, 2 authors.
Turmeric as a Possible Treatment for COVID-19-Induced Anosmia and Ageusia
A Bert Chabot, Margaret P Huntwork
Cureus, doi:10.7759/cureus.17829
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused a calamitous perturbation of society worldwide. Anosmia and ageusia (or hyposmia and dysgeusia) have been recognized as two common expressions of COVID-19 infection that linger for days to weeks, and in rare cases are thought to be immutable. Time alone has hitherto proven most effective in their restoration, but turmeric, long believed by some to have medicinal properties, may be a swifter and surer alleviator of anosmia and ageusia. This case series reports the speedy and consequential restoration of taste and smell in two subjects infected with COVID-19 following ingestion of one 1000 mg dose of a turmeric supplement. In view of this, we propose that turmeric be considered in the treatment of anosmia and ageusia caused by COVID-19 infection.
Additional Information
Disclosures Human subjects: Consent was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services
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