Developing a Novel Multimodal Training System toAaid Effective Recovery from Impairment of Smell, Taste and Chemesthesis

The loss of flavour perception has a strong impact on the quality of life as it may lead to weight loss, malnutrition, and depression. Two main affected groups are i) older adults of 2.1 billion by 2050; ii) COVID-19 recovery patients of 50.6 million globally with 76% and 89% reported the loss of taste and smell plus 46% had a reduction of chemethesis. Olfactory training (sniffing essential oils twice daily for 4-month) demonstrated its benefit on the recovery of perception in some studies because it stimulates the olfactory cells and helps to strengthen the neural pathway in the brain. The aim of this study is to generate fundamental and applied knowledge on the design of a multimodal (i.e., combination of olfaction, gustation, and trigeminal sensation) training tool based on the chewing gum system to aid effective recovery for humans with loss of perception.