Hi! I’m one month post op vsg and woke up today with a metallic taste in my mouth when drinking water. Tried adding crystal light thinking it was our water with no change. Just came out and had a bottle of Aquafina with the same taste so it’s just me. Is this a sign of a vitamin deficiency? I’m diligent about taking my multivitamins, calcium, and b12 daily.

you're very likely in ketosis. The metallic taste (at the back of the throat and sides of the tongue?) is a result of breaking down and using ketones, the by-product of which is acetyl-CoA and acetate.... dont worry about it it indicates your insulin and blood sugar levels are dropping.. also a good thing. It will resolve through the day then come back periodically. This goes away entirely for most people who enter ketosis and stay there after a few weeks.

More info, look up "keto breath"

And keto body odour! I had keto breath & body odour for more than a month.

Could be some reflux too. I sometimes get a bad taste in my mouth from that.

On 07/04/2020 at 16:00, Pckeys said:

you're very likely in ketosis. The metallic taste (at the back of the throat and sides of the tongue?) is a result of breaking down and using ketones, the by-product of which is acetyl-CoA and acetate.... dont worry about it it indicates your insulin and blood sugar levels are dropping.. also a good thing. It will resolve through the day then come back periodically. This goes away entirely for most people who enter ketosis and stay there after a few weeks.

More info, look up "keto breath"

Very interesting! I haven’t been extreme carb-limiting, but totally possible. I just worry about fluid intake because the usual additives aren’t making the Ayer more palatable. But it’s good to hear that even if it’s intermittent, at least it’s temporary.

The water *

On 07/04/2020 at 19:05, Arabesque said:

And Keto body odour! I had keto breath & body odour for more than a month.

Could be some reflux too. I sometimes get a bad taste in my mouth from that.

Yikes! I guess it’s a small price to pay. I’ve lost 24 pounds this month and I’m just 10 away from entering onederland so no complaints here ?

4 minutes ago, Dee.Lams said:

Very interesting! I haven’t been extreme carb-limiting, but totally possible. I just worry about Fluid intake because the usual additives aren’t making the Ayer more palatable. But it’s good to hear that even if it’s intermittent, at least it’s temporary.

Even without the extreme carb limiting, the caloric restriction (less than 900 calories) will eventually put you in some degree of ketosis. The telling factor here is that it happens when waking (after an extended period of fasting overnight)... if getting fluids is an issue at the moment, start thinking less about water and more about other ways of getting fluids. Bone broth/soups/almond milk etc..

On 07/04/2020 at 19:14, Pckeys said:

Even without the extreme carb limiting, the caloric restriction (less than 900 calories) will eventually put you in some degree of ketosis. The telling factor here is that it happens when waking (after an extended period of fasting overnight)... if getting fluids is an issue at the moment, start thinking less about Water and more about other ways of getting fluids. Bone broth/soups/almond milk etc..

Very good point! Thanks for the education. And I’ll definitely focus on broth/almond milk— appreciate the tips!

Bringing this thread back to life. I'm in the pre-op diet. It's only been a few days and I have what I call a chemical taste in my mouth. It's like the nasty taste you yet sometimes when swallowing a pill but it dissolves some before you can get it down. Like a nasty pill taste. A chemical taste is how I can best describe it.

On my pre-op diet, I drink 2 protein shakes and can have a healthy dinner. Just like the original poster, I noticed the taste when drinking water and thought it was the water. But, with multiple new bottles of water, it's still there. Brushing my teeth and mouthwash dont fix it either. But, when I eat real food, I dont taste it. I looked up ketosis because I remembered reading about that on here. But, I was shocked that it could happen so soon and since I am eating a dinner meal with food versus drinking shakes for all three meals. Does it sound like this could be keto breath already? Just seems fast to me.

Edited March 30, 20215 yr by Blueslily

I had a weird salty metallic taste in my mouth for the first 3/4 days of my liquid diet (I was allowed vegetables and ate a them for dinner too) it went away on the 5th day for me. So hopefully it will pass for you too.

But my sense of smell has been super-heightened since being on the liquid diet!

Ugh... glad I searched for this... I lost 50 lbs before surgery and this didn't happen, nor did it happen with a super low carb diet on the pre-op diet. But now, exactly one month after surgery, I woke up yesterday with a metallic, gross taste in my mouth and I can no longer stand plain water. Also, it's not just in the morning, and brushing my teeth doesn't help one bit.

Is it good to be in ketosis? Will weight loss go any faster? (I'm down 18 lbs in a month, so I'm fine with my progress, just curious.) Are there other effects of being in ketosis? Is this why I'm so dizzy? I'm drinking more than 64 oz of water each day, but it's flavored water or tea or coffee or protein shakes or diet (5 calorie) juice, not plain water which I miss. Will this gross taste go away?

Had that when I first got gerd. It is one of the symptoms I believe. Talk to your team if you keep experiencing it.

46 minutes ago, Tomo said:

Had that when I first got gerd. It is one of the symptoms I believe. Talk to your team if you keep experiencing it.

I've had GERD. It doesn't feel like when I had it, but I guess it could be a different manifestation

Yeah, I don't think everyone gets the same symptoms. I only had it in the beginning. Metallic mouth can be caused by a lot of other things too. Here is the gerd one: https://metaqil.com/gerd-and-metallic-taste/

14 hours ago, Tomo said:

Yeah, I don't think everyone gets the same symptoms. I only had it in the beginning. Metallic mouth can be caused by a lot of other things too. Here is the gerd one: https://metaqil.com/gerd-and-metallic-taste/

Yeah, I know it can be from GERD, but this is mostly on the tip of my tongue and a bit on the roof of my mouth at the front, which would not seem likely to be from GERD, plus it more seems bitter than metallic exactly. I'd send a message to my surgery center, but they never respond.

5 hours ago, lizonaplane said:

Yeah, I know it can be from GERD, but this is mostly on the tip of my tongue and a bit on the roof of my mouth at the front, which would not seem likely to be from GERD, plus it more seems bitter than metallic exactly. I'd send a message to my surgery center, but they never respond.

Yeah, if you don't have any of the other classic symptoms, you probably don't have it anyway. That is terrible they never respond. ?