Abstract
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE This study was conducted to examine the effect of starting a meal with salt and date palm on the sense of taste in COVID-19 patients. METHODS This study was conducted using a randomized controlled method. Patient and disease information forms and Visual Analog Scale were used for data collection. Salt and date palm were used to stimulate the sense of taste in two different experimental groups. No procedure was made in the control group except for the practice of the clinic. The results were analyzed using SPSS version 25. RESULTS The mean ages of all groups were between 43.42 ± 8.60 and 47.22 ± 12.04 years. Fever, sore throat, dry mouth, cough, muscle weakness, and similar symptoms were present in all groups. Significant improvements were found in patients with hypoageusia and ageusia after date palm and salt application (p<0.01). CONCLUSION For taste impairment caused by COVID-19, consumption of date palm and tasting very little salt for therapeutic purposes may help to alleviate taste impairment. Based on the data obtained from this study, the pathophysiology of the effects of date palm and salt on taste complications should be investigated.
