diff --git a/sanic/headers.py b/sanic/headers.py
index 412f2871..b7b75db7 100644
--- a/sanic/headers.py
+++ b/sanic/headers.py
@@ -178,8 +178,10 @@ def parse_accept(accept: str) -> AcceptList:
     accorsing to RFC 7231, s. 5.3.2
     https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc7231#section-5.3.2
     """
+    if not accept:
+        return AcceptList()
     try:
-        a = [MediaType._parse(mtype) for mtype in accept.split(",") if mtype]
+        a = [MediaType._parse(mtype) for mtype in accept.split(",")]
         return AcceptList(sorted(a, key=lambda mtype: -mtype.q))
     except ValueError:
         raise InvalidHeader(f"Invalid header value in Accept: {accept}")