Pine Nut Syndrome

I noticed something weird this week: just about everything I ate tasted odd. No matter what it was, from bland rice cakes to strong, dark coffee, a few minutes after I ate or drank it, there was an odd, bitter flavor lingering in my mouth.

Being me, naturally, I assumed the worst: That they were going to have to remove my mouth, or something.

Thankfully, before I scheduled an appointment for the removal, I read a few articles, such as Taste Disturbances After Pine Nut Ingestion, Pine Nuts Left a Bitter Taste in My Mouth, and The Pine Nut Menace and learned that it’s a phenomena that can happen after consuming certain pine nuts, naming Chinese pine nuts as a possible culprit.

Huh?

I’ve been eating pine nuts for decades seemingly without any problems. But after reading those articles and popping Vichy mints almost non-stop to get the taste out of my mouth, I’m now going to check the origin of the pine nuts I purchase, buying Italian ones just to be sure.

Because it’s been almost a week now and I’m thinking all these mints I’m eating might be burning a hole in my mouth. Then I’d really have something to see the doctor about.

And goodness knows, I wouldn’t want to lose my ability to freely speak. Although not everyone, I think, necessarily shares that opinion.