Can you TASTE your AS?

[ScottyD]

I am 45 years old and have never had any issues regarding aftershaves or colognes. Lately I have been noticing that within about an hour of spashing on my usual aftershave or cologne I begin to TASTE it in my mouth. This is beginning to drive me crazy and it happens if I apply it to my face, neck, or even my wrists. At first I couldn't figure out what was causing this to happen, I figured it was my toothpaste or the coffee I was drinking before work. But I have determined that it only happens when I apply aftershave or cologne after shaving. I have been shaving and using aftershave/cologne since I was a teenager and never had this occur, so why now? I first started noticing it with Trumpers Sandlewood, so I switched to something else. Now it happens whether I use a high end product like Trumpers or Penhaligons or if I use Aqua Velva or Old Spice. Like I said, withing an hour of applying the AS or cologne my tongue begins to feel like I stuck it in the bottle or rinsed my mouth with it. What is causing this? Am I developing an allergy to these products? One thing I've noticed is that it does not happen when I use only Thayers Non-Alcohol products, so is it the alcohol based products?

I'm quite concerned about this because I have a pretty nice collection of aftershaves and colognes that I have stopped using because this sensation lasts for a couple of hours and is pretty disgusting. I would hate to have to give away my favorite products and have to use just the Thayers by itself.

[Eagle]

I would hate to have to give away my favorite products

Yes that would be terrible. My address is...

Seriously, I have never heard of this. I do believe if it was happening to me consistently I would check w/ my doctor. As long as you're sure you don't bite your nails or lick your fingers or something, the only feasible explanation is the products are somehow leeching through your skin which can't be a good thing.

EDIT: Just thought of something else. If a cloud of vapor is entering your nasal cavity that would end up in the back of your mouth where you might taste it.

[Bflobill 1125]

Thats a strange one............I use AV every morning never had that happen!! Maybe asking your family Doctor might not be a bad idea.

[rafikz]

Yes Sir, I can !!!!

Wait...

You mean aftershave?

I've lost interest

[prewt]

My mind is in the gutter.

[Hoos]

Like Prewt, this thread topic immediately looked like "Can you TASTE your [three-letter-word for donkey]?"

And I thought "Oh no. Didn't the 'do you shave south' and 'what's talc good for' threads cover everything we need to know about each other?"

Then I read it.

"Tasting" your aftershave (or a/s) or other scent isn't unusual. Scent and taste are very closely tied together. If your nose is very sensitive, you may also get a "taste" of something you smell.

This hasn't happened with me with aftershaves, but it has happened with heavy perfumes/colognes.

[Bluestaco]

Like Prewt, this thread topic immediately looked like "Can you TASTE your [three-letter-word for donkey]?"

And I thought "Oh no. Didn't the 'do you shave south' and 'what's talc good for' threads cover everything we need to know about each other?"

Then I read it.

"Tasting" your aftershave (or a/s) or other scent isn't unusual. Scent and taste are very closely tied together. If your nose is very sensitive, you may also get a "taste" of something you smell.

This hasn't happened with me with aftershaves, but it has happened with heavy perfumes/colognes.

Okay, first, I'm going to go off on my usual brief rant about the "scent and taste are very closely tied together" assertion that people tend to make. Nuh -uh. Your nose and your mouth are very closely tied together, but the organs, neural pathways, and processing centers in your brain for taste and smell are not the same. Hit your thumb with a hammer and your elbow doesn't hurt just because the nerves run parallel. </rant>

I can taste my aftershave sometimes, because I don't have a sense of smell. Some things like menthol and eucalyptus (gag!) will kind of hang on the mucous membranes in my mouth and I can just detect them...to an annoying degree. That "taste" from AV is nice, but I get a "whiff" (for lack of a better word) of Nivea balm once in a while and it's ashy. I don't know if what you experience is like this, but it's really interesting.

[ScottyD]

Interesting feedback so far, thanks. I'll try to be more specific. I do not think it is related to the smell. For example if I use Sandlewood cologne, I don't actually taste sandlewood. My tongue gets a thick, almost oily feeling to it, which is really difficult to describe. If I apply cologne or AS to my face and neck, I can feel and taste it rather quickly, within 15 minutes or so. I tried applying cologne to just my wrists and the same "taste/feeling" occured within an hour or so which leads me to believe an ingredient or something in the product is being absorbed into my skin and somehow circulating through my body until it reaches my tongue and I begin to taste it.

I know this sounds crazy but it is really happening and I don't understand why. Like I said, I have been using colognes and aftershaves for well over 25years and this is a recent development. It took me a while to figure out it was colognes/aftershave causing it but when I don't use them I don't have the problem. Within a short period of time after applying some scents it begins to happen. So I'm convinced it is an ingredient in the products I have been using but I don't understand how or why it is happening.

I thought for sure some other members would have had this experience. I thought maybe it was the alcohol content in some products, but I do drink alcohol and do not have any problems with that so it is even more puzzling.

Any doctors out there have any ideas before I go to my guy with this issue?

Anybody with a biology background have any ideas?

Thanks for the input.

[Bluestaco]

I wonder if after shave has DMSO in it at all. I understand that it causes an oily/garlicky/oystery taste shortly after it gets on the skin. Dunno.