I was applying a numbing oral gel to my mouth to help with a painful cancer sore. I added too much so I got some on my tongue. I found that I was now unable to taste anything. This got me wondering, why does this numbing agent cause my tastebuds to lose their taste-sensing abilities? Is taste based on touch/feel? I always figured that taste wasn’t really based on the feel of a food/object but more of a chemically constructed sense (if that makes sense?). Anyhow, if anyone can explain what’s happening, that would be great to know! 🙂
In: Biology
One of the nerves responsible for taste in the anterior 2/3rds of the tongue (chordae tympani) hitch hikes with the nerve responsible for sense (the lingual nerve)(they travel together) so when the numbing gel is applied it inhibits the sodium transmission thus inhibiting sensory and the special sensory (taste) components.
The gel works by blocking nerve conduction, essentially the cells responsible for sending signal temporarily lose the ability to send signals
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