How Jamie quit smoking and rediscovered a world of flavour

IMAGINE a juicy strawberry or your favourite dark chocolate tasting like it’s the first time you’ve tried them.

For smokers, that’s the kind of flavour-packed world they could be missing out on.

But the good news is quitting cigarettes really can bring about a taste sensation.

Just seven days of abstinence is enough to notice a difference, according to Professor Barry Smith, founding director of the Centre for the Study of the Senses and a leading expert in taste, smell and flavour.

“It’s definitely true that after quitting you’ll find there’s more taste and flavour to your food,”; says Professor Smith.

“Flavour is a combination of taste and smell. It’s the delicious aromas of food plus the saltiness, sweetness or sourness.

“If we don’t have smell involved, we get very little flavour and food can be very dull.”;

If you quit smoking, your sense of smell will have recovered after a month and a half or two

Professor Barry Smith

Nicotine from smoking suppresses the taste buds, while the smoke itself damages the receptors in your nose.

Your tongue’s taste buds typically recover within a week of quitting, while your “smell factory”; takes around 45 to 60 days to get back to full strength.

“These receptors regenerate every two or three months. So if you quit smoking, after a month and a half or two months, your sense of smell will have recovered. It’s pretty fast.”;

So as well as taking advantage of the support available to help quit – from nicotine patches to stop-smoking services and the free NHS Quit Smoking app, which is packed with tips and tracks progress – we can also use our senses to make the journey easier.

Here are Professor Smith’s top three helpful hints:

Day one to seven: boost your motivation

Play spot the difference. “Try melting a piece of 60 to 70 per cent dark chocolate on your tongue or eat something salty on the day you stop and repeat a week later. I promise it’ll taste different,”; says Professor Smith.

“Also, keep a food diary and experiment with different flavours.”; Noticing changes in flavour can help keep you motivated.

And finally, book or plan your own celebration meal. “Remember, it can take 60 days to fully appreciate your food again, so plan a treat to look forward to.

“Eat your favourite dish and notice how much better the experience is than it would previously have been.”;

Beat post-meal cravings with a coffee

If you’d normally follow dinner with a cigarette, try an espresso instead. “My dad was a heavy smoker. Even 40 years after quitting he still wanted a cigarette after eating,”; says Professor Smith.

“It’s that rush of nicotine. Similarly, we love that little rush of caffeine, and this small hit helps get rid of the smoking cravings.”;

Start smell training

Research shows that as our sense of smell improves, our food and mood get brighter too, which may reduce cigarette cravings.

“Smell training is nice to do when you’re quitting,”; says Professor Smith. “Get four essential oils – the classic set is rose, lemon, clove and eucalyptus – and smell the bottles or put three drops on cotton wool in a jar.”;

Screw the lid tightly and take a deep sniff first thing in the morning and last thing at night. “We used the same technique to help people recover their sense of smell after COVID – it really helps bring your smell sense back to life.”;

‘I can’t believe how good cheese tastes!’

Jamie Sharp, 36, a content solutions partner from London, quit smoking in January after 25 years. Along with feeling healthier and saving money, he’s amazed by how much his sense of taste has improved.

To see just how far he’s come, we set him a blind taste test to find out which foods have benefited most from his rebooted taste buds.

Jamie says: “I’ve smoked since I was 11. I’ve tried to give up before, but this time I’m determined. I’m tracking my progress on the NHS app, and I love the fact that food suddenly tastes amazing.

“I’ve always been a foodie and prefer savoury flavours, and now foods like cheese, cured meats and pâtés taste incredible.

“Everything tastes richer, fresher, and a little seasoning or soy sauce goes a long way. It’s helping me stick to quitting – I can’t wait to explore more flavours.”;

Here are Jamie’s top five food rediscoveries

1. Mushrooms
“Mushrooms can be a bit bland, but I was pleasantly surprised. Cooked with garlic, now that I’ve quit smoking, they’re next-level: 20 out of 10!”;

2. Mild cheese
“I’ve always loved cheese, but I used to think milder varieties were a waste of calories because they didn’t taste of much. I was so wrong. Now that I’ve quit smoking, I can really taste them – creamier, richer and far more delicious.

“I no longer need the strongest extra mature Cheddar to get the flavour and I finally understand why everyone raves about Wensleydale with cranberries.”;

3. Coffee
“A frothy coffee is 10 out of 10. Probably because dairy things taste so much better. And I don’t need a cigarette with it.”;

4. Steak
“Before I needed heavy sauces to bring the flavour out, but I’ve ditched them – the full sweetness of the meat comes through now.”;

5. Broccoli
“Broccoli in the air fryer is my new favourite thing. I leave it in until it’s slightly charred and it develops this incredible smoky aroma.”;

Wonder what flavours you might discover when you quit. For help, download the free NHS Quit Smoking app today