Gustatory Aura Symptoms (Taste)
Type: Transitory aura symptom — typically develops gradually over 5–20 minutes and resolves within 60 minutes.
What is it?
Gustatory aura symptoms are temporary disturbances of taste that occur during a migraine aura. These can manifest as illusions (real food tasting wrong or different from normal) or hallucinations (tasting something with no food present). Unlike the taste buds on your tongue, gustatory aura originates in the brain’s perception centers. These taste disturbances can occur in migraine but also occasionally in temporal lobe seizures, so medical evaluation is warranted if you experience this symptom.
What it feels like
Taste disturbances during migraine aura develop suddenly and are unmistakable. If you’re eating food, it tastes completely wrong — pizza might taste like blueberries, or a pork chop tastes like bleach. The distorted taste is so vivid that you might stop eating or spit out food because it’s unappetizing or disturbing. If you experience a hallucinated taste with no food present, the most common sensation is a metallic or bitter taste, sometimes described as smoky. You might feel tingling or stinging on the back of your tongue. These taste disturbances typically last 20-60 minutes and resolve completely as the aura ends, with normal taste returning afterward.
How patients describe it
“Once I ate a piece of pizza that tasted like blueberries. It was such a curious sensation that I just kept eating it! But the pork chop that tasted like clorox bleach I set aside for half an hour, after which it tasted like pork again, and the cup of coffee that tasted like whiskey I threw out … Ain’t the brain a fascinating thing?” — P.H.B.
“Smell and taste seem to be different starting a day or two before the migraine and lasts for the duration but returns to normal after recovery. I become very sensitive to odors, particularly bad ones. Often my food tastes different from normal and usually not appetizing.” — D.D.
“I have a funny taste before and during my migraines, but I don’t think of it as metallic. It tastes bitter and smoky, and feels almost like the back of my tongue is stinging. I don’t get a visual aura at all, but I regard my ‘migraine taste’ as comparable to an aura - it happens every time, starting about a minute before the serious pain begins, and lasting about 20 minutes.” — L.T.B.
Subtypes
Gustatory illusions
Real food tastes dramatically different or wrong — familiar foods taste unfamiliar, unpleasant, or like something completely different. The taste is vivid and disturbing enough to make eating unpleasant.
Gustatory hallucinations
Tasting something with no food present in your mouth. The most common hallucinated taste is metallic, often accompanied by a bitter or smoky quality, sometimes with a stinging sensation on the tongue.
Related symptoms
- Olfactory disturbances (smell disturbances)
- Nausea and decreased appetite
- Other sensory auras
- Heightened sensitivity to odors
Clinical note
Gustatory aura symptoms are documented in migraine but can occasionally occur in complex partial seizure disorder. If you experience taste disturbances during migraine aura, medical evaluation is warranted to distinguish migraine from seizure disorders, particularly if symptoms are new or severe. These symptoms do not indicate dental problems or damage to your taste buds, and they resolve completely as the migraine progresses.
If this is the first time you experience these symptoms, or they feel different from previous episodes, seek medical evaluation to rule out other causes.