Update 2/7/22. According to the American Tinnitus Association, 21.4 million people in America suffer from ringing in the ears (tinnitus ). Unfortunately, I am one of those people. My battle with this disorder came on slowly in my left ear but as it got worse, it's caused significant hearing loss. Here, for the first time, I will reveal the journey I've undertaken to try to find a natural cure for my tinnitus. Here also, I'll tell you about the supplements and other alternative treatments I've tried. I'm doing this to help others who are searching for answers. I'm also looking for answers myself, so if you too are dealing with this tinnitus, do tell me what has worked – and not worked – for you. I'm all ears…
How Did I Get Tinnitus?
I honestly have no idea. The ringing in my ears started around 2013 with a slight noise in my left ear. I didn't pay much attention to it at first. After a few months, because it was not going away, I decided to look into what was causing it. So I scheduled a hearing test. At that time, the doctors could not figure out what was causing my left ear ringing. Since I was not losing my hearing (back then), the doctors basically said: “deal with it.”
While this was not the news I wanted to hear, I'd already been dealing with it for several months, so I resigned myself to the fact that this is what life had in store with me.
At least my hearing was normal I told myself…
After several months of going about my business, one night I had a god-awful pain/pressure in my left ear. It was maddening and actually hurt. Sometimes, in the middle of the night, I became dizzy – really dizzy. The bed was doing flip-flops and spinning. I could hardly get out of bed. In fact, I could not function. I spent the next day or so in bed, unable to work or do anything.
An then, as quick as it came, the dizziness left.
While the dizziness was gone, I still had tinnitus – and still, do to this day.
Since that time I've only had one other bout with severe dizziness. As bad as the ear ringing can be at times, at least I can function. The dizziness, on the other hand, is incapacitating.
A few things worth mentioning are that I did suffer a concussion in 2010 but that was 3 years before my symptoms started. I've asked doctors about this. Some say it's not related – because they occurred 3 years apart- but others say they might be related. I did have a head and neck MRI and it showed no physical damage.
I also seem to have temporomandibular joint disorder (usually called TMJ). TMJ is linked to tinnitus too. I believe my father had it also. I'm not aware of any tinnitus in my father and I've had TMJ for as long as I can remember. My tinnitus started in 2013.
Could all this be the perfect storm as they say? Who knows.
One other odd thing I've noticed is that the ringing in my left ear seems to get temporarily louder after I drink a smoothie for breakfast. This is especially so after I sit down at my desk (but it doesn't seem to occur if I'm standing). The smoothie I make has a lot of fruits and veggies in it. Fruits and veggies have a lot of potassium. One doctor thought this might be related to changes in the sodium/potassium pumps in the cells of my ears. Again, I can't be sure of this. I'm bringing this up in case it helps someone else.
As the months turned into years, I've noticed a slight ringing in my right ear has begun. This right ear tinnitus is not as bad as what I experience in my left ear and there are times I don't even notice it.
Now that I've shared my story, let me now share with you the things I've done to try to cure tinnitus.
Tinnitus Tests and Medications
After several months of dealing with the ringing, my doctor prescribed a round of prednisone to see if this was related to inflammation. I must admit, I loved prednisone. I felt great like I was 20 years old again! Unfortunately, prednisone is not a drug you can stay on long, so after a week or so, I tapered off the medication.
Unfortunately, prednisone had no effect on tinnitus.
By this time, people started saying to me “maybe it's a tumor.” I doubted it was, but just to be safe, I oped to get an MRI of my head and neck. I had to pay for this out of pocket because insurance would not cover it (thanks Aetna!).
Fortunately, the MRI was normal.
My Hearing Gets Worse
I could live with the ringing in my left ear but unfortunately, I eventually started going deaf in that ear. It was a slow and subtle decline, but I knew something was happening when I began having trouble understanding people who spoke too fast or too low. To compensate I would orientate my head such that my good, right ear, was to the person speaking.
This eventually prompted me to seek the help of an ENT doctor. This physician diagnosed me with Meniere's disease and confirmed what I already knew; the hearing in my left ear was less than my right ear.
He prescribed a water pill called Triamterene-HCTZ and advised me to eat a low sodium diet and cut back on caffeine. I normally don't eat a lot of salt, and thanks to the book How Not To Die I was already eating a lot more fruits and veggies.
Reducing caffeine was harder to do but I can now report that most days I don't have any.
But, because I didn't want to keep taking Triamterene-HCTZ forever, and because I was not satisfied with waiting and seeing if this would get worse, I decided to take matters into my own hands and see if there were some natural cures or treatments for tinnitus / Meniere's disease.
Here is a list of what I experimented with. If you think I should try anything else, leave your ideas in the comments below.
Supplements For Tinnitus
There are many supplements that are touted to improve ringing in the ears. Here is a brief review of what I experimented with and after that, I'll summarize the other alternative treatments I tried.
Many of the tinnitus supplements I purchased came from my local Vitamin Shoppe. When I could, I purchased their name brand supplements because I've never seen anything bad about Vitamin Shoppe brands.
When Vitamin Shoppe did not have a name brand for what I was looking for, I purchased from other companies (Natures Bounty, Natures Made, etc.) who I felt had a good reputation and offered the supplement in an amount that could most easily help me reach the dosage I was looking for.
LipoFlavonoid
The first supplement I tried was Lipoflavonoid. This is arguably the best-known tinnitus supplement, thanks to its TV ads. Lipoflavonoid
contains a bioflavonoid (plant nutrient) from lemons called eriodictyol glycoside.
Research, conducted in the 1960s noted that bioflavonoids from lemons might help tinnitus. I took Lipoflavonoid for over 2 months but unfortunately did not find any significant relief.
See the LipoFlavonoid review for more info on the supplement and my experiment with it.
Lemon Bioflavonoid
The extract in lipo flavonoid is also available as a stand-alone supplement. While I did not have much luck with Lipoflavonoid, I thought I'd go right to the source and just use the active ingredient.
I tried a lemon bioflavonoid supplement that contained:
- 1000 mg lemon bioflavonoid (50% active)
- 100 mg Hesperidin complex
- 100 mg Rutin complex
I took 1-2 tables for a month but did not notice any symptom relief.
N-Acetyl Cysteine
N-acetyl Cysteine (NAC) is a popular supplement because it can raise glutathione levels. Glutathione is a very strong antioxidant enzyme. Some researchers have noted that older men with ear ringing have more oxidative stress (free radical damage) than those without tinnitus. In theory, this might lead to blood vessel damage, resulting in ear ringing.
One report tells the story of a 47 yr old woman whose tinnitus had “largely disappeared” after taking 2 grams of NAC per day. She had tinnitus for 6 years prior to this for unknown reasons.
The report does not say how long the woman took NAC supplements but based on this I tried 2 grams of NAC for 1 month. I can't say though that I felt any different afterward. NAC is a fine supplement, but for tinnitus, it just didn't work for me.
Here are NAC supplements on Amazon if you want to try them.
Can Acai Berry Improve Tinnitus
Some feel ringing in the ears is caused by free radical damage (oxidative stress) which kills the hair cells in the ears. Acai berry contains antioxidants, which in theory should neutralize free radicals and thus improve tinnitus hearing loss symptoms. So far one study appears to show people taking acai berry supplements show improvements in their symptoms. Here is a video I created to help you understand this research
Watch on my YouTube channel if you prefer.
Ginkgo Biloba
For a short period of time – against my better judgment -I started taking ginkgo Biloba to see if it helped. This was based on some evidence that ginkgo might help tinnitus symptoms. Most of the research was on an extract called EGB 761. While other research noted ginkgo did not work, I decided to try it anyway. For a couple of weeks, I used 60-120 mg of ginkgo per day.
I say against my better judgment because it has some evidence suggesting a risk of ginkgo causing brain bleeding.
Maybe I was overly paranoid but I started getting headaches when I used ginkgo. I never get headaches and so this worried me. I stopped taking ginkgo after a couple of weeks and never took it again. I also saw no change in tinnitus while taking ginkgo either.
Pycnogenol
At the same time I was taking ginkgo, I also started taking pycnogenol based on one study showing it helped. The study I'm referring to used 150 mg of pycnogenol per day and noted improvement after 3-6 months. I chose to use 100 mg per day because I'm cheap and pycnogenol can be expensive.
I stooped taking pycnogenol after a month because I saw no improvement in tinnitus symptoms. I know, the study said it might take 3-6 months to see changes, but I honestly found it hard to believe I would not notice anything after taking it for 30 days – especially when I was combining it with other healthy changes.
I know some will bash me on this. That is your prerogative.
Grape Seed Extract
Grape seed extract – like pycnogenol – is supposed to help blood vessels stay healthy and improve blood flow. If tinnitus is related to reduced blood flow to the ears (as some think it is) then it makes sense that things like grape seed extract might help. At least one study noted grape seed extract improved nitric oxide production. Nitric oxide relaxes blood vessels, allowing for better blood flow.
I tried grape seed extract (100 mg/ day) for a month but saw no change in tinnitus noise symptoms. I picked 100 mg per day because I could not find any direct human research that revealed an actual amount that might work. Basically, I took a guess here.
Korean Red Ginseng
Ginseng is complicated because there is more than one type. One study involving noted that 1500-3000 mg per day of Korean red ginseng experienced improvements in their “quality of life.” This was determined by questionnaires the people completed before an after this 4-week study.
Even though Korean red ginseng did not improve tinnitus symptoms, the people in the study felt their quality of life was better. My overall quality of life is pretty good, but I reluctantly thought I'd give it a try and see what happened.
I used about 1500 mg of Korean red ginseng for a month. I noticed no difference in my tinnitus symptoms.
Taurine
Taurine is an amino acid. There is a rat study that showed taurine helped tinnitus (I have no idea how did they figure that out). While this was only a rat study, I did some math and determined they used between 67 mg/kg and 294 mg/kg. For a human of my weight, this was roughly equal to 1000 mg and 4000 mg per day.
So, I split the difference and took about 2000 mg of taurine per day for a month. Unfortunately, I saw no change in ear ringing symptoms. Because it was only a rat study, I knew it was a long shot but I felt it was worth a try.
Other Tinnitus Therapies
I not only experimented with supplements. I also actively sought out other therapies that might help tinnitus. Here is a brief review of the other alternative therapies I tried.
Acupuncture
There have been studies showing acupuncture helps tinnitus. That said when taken as a whole, the general conclusion is that it may or may not help. This may be due to problems with how some of the studies were conducted.
Either way, I found an acupuncturist who listed on her website that she could provide tinnitus relief. I did six – 45-minute treatments. I was pretty aggressive with the acupuncture, doing 2 treatments a week, for 3 weeks total.
While the acupuncture was very relaxing, it did not reduce the ringing in my ears. While it's true it may take longer than this to work, the acupuncturist told me I should start to see improvements after 2-3 treatments. I noticed no change in my tinnitus symptoms during or after my treatments.
Chiropractic
At last one study has noted chiropractic treatments can help people with Meniere's disease. One study that is frequently cited online is of a 40-year-old woman who had tinnitus for 2 years. Within 2 weeks of receiving chiropractic treatments, she was basically cured.
Based on that case report, I sought out a chiropractor to see if it might help me. Unfortunately, I don't think it worked. I did 3 chiropractic adjustments, spanning 3 weeks. During the first treatment, I did not feel any different (no better and no worse). At about 30 minutes after the second treatment, however, I started to feel dizzy and this persisted in various degrees for about a week.
On the final visit, I was not adjusted – based on what happened the week beforehand – and just received some gentle massage and ultrasound. That did not help either. I did not continue with that chiropractic because I felt 3 weeks was enough, but more than that, I was skittish that further treatments might make me dizzy again.
I followed this up with another chiropractor who, I was told, specializes in the spine and neck area. She performed cranial sacral therapy (see the next section) but I did not notice a difference. I did not continue to see this therapist because her schedule only allowed me to get an appointment about every month or so. I thought that was too long to wait between treatments and so I did not continue.
Cranial Sacral Therapy
Craniosacral therapy refers to a type of gentle massage of the head and neck. It's very different than traditional chiropractic treatments. there are no adjustments with cranial sacral therapy. The internet is full of websites that claim this therapy can help. So, I sought out two different massage therapists who specialize in this. The first therapist I only saw once because of the distance and because I could not get appointments close enough to each other to see if it was effective.
The next massage therapist I saw gave me the opportunity to have 3 treatments, each separated by 1 week. In the end, while I liked craniosacral therapy (it was very relaxing), I did not feel it worked. I felt no different during or between treatments.
Tai Chi Chih
Tai chi chih is a form of tai chi. I have a friend who teaches this who told me stories of people whose tinnitus improved after doing this type of exercise. So, I took a class that lasted 8 weeks with one 50 -60-minute class each week. I attended most classes but I freely admit that I did not practice the exercises when I was not in class. This was my fault.
Whether Tai Chi Chih helps tinnitus/ Meniere's disease or not I cannot say. I can only say I did not feel any different during classes or afterward.
So, Where Am I At Now…?
I wish I had good news. So I wrote this review in 2017. Since then things have slowly deteriorated. I estimate I've lost about 90% of the hearing in my left ear. It was a slow decline but it was a decline nonetheless. The tinnitus varies. Some days it's very loud and others I almost don't even notice it. Most days I'm very aware of it. I
My quest to find a tinnitus cure continues…
I'm sorry to say I don't have many answers for you. I wish I could point you to something that helped me. If you're looking for a supplement, I'd start with LipoFlavonoid first. It does have some evidence and people have told me it may work. Because tinnitus comes in many shapes and sizes, don't take what I say as gospel. What didn't work for me may work for you. If nothing else, I hope I gave you some ideas to help you on your own journey to find a cure.
Hi everyone, There’s some research on acai berry supplements helping tinnitus. I’ve looked at the research and produced this quick video to show you what happened, how much acai berry was used, and what the results were. I hope it helps
https://youtu.be/wARgoanDg84
This video goes to my YouTube channel
If you come across any tinnitus supplements you want me to review, leave a comment. Thanks and I hope you all doing well.
Hi Joe
I suggest you try C60 from a reliable source. It’s a powerful anti inflammatory that calms the immune system. Good luck!
Hi Anna, have you had success with carbon 60? I have not tried it but I did do a deep dive into to carbon 60 research
SES C60 review
but on my podcast I interviewed Chris Burris of my Vital C. My Vital C is the same thing as SES C60. I believe they are the biggest maker of Carbon 60
C60 podcast interview
I have had tinnitus for many, many years and for the last 6 or so have also been wearing hearing aids. The hearing aids were supposed to mask or muffle the tinnitus but they don’t. Right now I’m listening to my constant “tinnitus concert” in my head. I used to sing at senior centers and nursing homes and a couple of fundraising events years ago but as the tinnitus got louder, I could no longer hear the background music from the Karaoke machine and had to quit singing.
I truly miss it and sharing my music with others. The hearing aids only make things louder and somewhat distorted plus the tinnitus going on too makes me exhausted at the end of the with communication issues BUT I can still hear (not deaf) and have the blessing of closed caption on most things (I’d like to go back to the days when I did not know what CC was).
I now am starting to hear low but loud rumblings occasionally too. I once went down into the basement to see if something was wrong with the furnace but it was ok. Fortunately, I am able to sleep through the night (except for the nightly bathroom visits) without the use of white noise, etc.
Joe, how much CoQ10 are you taking? I take 200mg everyday because I take statin drugs. Never know how much is enough or too much. I remember reading your article in 2017 and now to re-read it and the comments know that this tinnitus thing is not going away any time soon if ever. Thanks for your awesome research and sharing the information. Sorry for the length here.
Hi Jackie, I take 100 mg of COq10 a day. I’m pretty healthy and from what Ive read that’s likely enough but you make me wonder if maybe 200 mg may help tinnitus? Ive not tried it. Maybe I will give it a try. When it comes to COQ10 and statins I think the sweet spot is when you dont have any muscle pains. Statins can sometimes cause muscle aches and fatigue in the legs and thats why COQ10 is sometimes recommended. Some people have told me its helped but the dosage may depend on how much statins you are taking. it may also depend on what kind of statin you take also.
I know what you say about hearing the constant “tinnitus concert” in your head. I have it too. Lately I’ve been dealing with vertigo as well and am getting physical therapy for it.
I’m SO sorry to hear you had to stop singing! I can only imagine how much grief that has caused. I pray one day they find a cure for tinnitus.
Thanks for all the research and info. I can empathize with you. I have it but mine started happening after a plane flight. When I got home i had very severe but temporary ear pain and bleeding from the ear. After over 2 years the tin continues, the popping in my ear comes and goes, I have seen an ENT and my hearing loss has gotten worse in the left ear and he basically seems to show no empathy. I also had an MRI and it showed nothing wrong. This is a very stressful serious problem and one thing for sure my ENT is going to get replaced.
Ron, definitely get a new ENT, if he is not showing you any empathy. My guess is the ENT told you to cut back on caffeine, salt, and maybe prescribed a water pill (Hydrochlorothiazide). None of that seems to make a difference to me. I’ve started detecting clicking and whirling sounds in my left ear. The whirring sounds seem to coincide with my heartbeat. My blood pressure is very good.
Please check out Liam Stops Tinnitus, Julian Cowan Hill and Joey Remenyl on Youtube.
Melodye, What specialty are they saying? I took a quick look at Liam’s channel. I would agree diet plays a role in tinnitus. Doctors have told me to avoid salt and caffeine. I also noticed cold foods can sometimes make tinnitus worse.
In one of his videos, he mentions how high insulin levels can be associated with tinnitus. I have not heard that but he does review a study and from what I saw he seems to be fair in how he breaks down the study. Im not a fan of his bad language in the videos. But I guess I do understand his frustration.
I agree about the bad language and actually stopped watching him but I finally realized it shows he’s passionate about what he knows and is sharing and Hayes that ppl get scammed by drs and ent’s. After all, he cured himself not only of noise trauma T from playing drums but also survived extreme food poisoning that almost killed him along with if he survived was large chance he’d lose his nose, ears, fingers and toes which he didn’t because of his largely carnivore diet.
The doctors were stunned. Anyway, here’s a run down of what I’ve learned over the last five months of my research: From what I’ve read and watched in videos is that tinnitus or ringing in the ears can be the result of noise, head, physical and/or emotional trauma, dental problems like bruxism (teeth grinding) or TMJ (jaw clenching) at night while sleeping, excessive ear wax or ear infection or other ear-related issues, stress and anxiety, certain medications, EMF’s from WIFi/5G or upper cervical subluxated Atlas and Axis (C1 and C2) neck related issues and even chemicals from hair dyes, personal care products and cosmetics, certain allergies to foods, bad diet or nutritional and/or vitamin and mineral deficiencies like vitamin C, zinc, iron, iodine, magnesium, D3 and K and even parasites.
Some people also believe it’s part of the ascension process into a higher frequency and that it’s the sound of angels, higher beings, the cosmos or God communicating with them through their hearing.
The standard explanation is that the brain is basically in fight or flight mode and you’re hearing your own nervous system on red alert. The brain can rewire itself over time by using a process called neuroplasticity which is fundamentally accepting it and getting used to it (habituation) then ignoring the sound and calming it down through relaxation techniques like meditation, yoga, Qi gong and/or exercise and/or neck release exercises called trigger point therapy, upper cervical chiropractic adjustments and/or regular chiropractic, certain dental procedures which involve the use of mouth guards, cranial sacral therapy, EFT also known as ‘tapping’, hypnotherapy, visualization, and other body and mind relaxation therapies and/or masking with nature sounds or pink noise.
What can also help is reducing/removing some or all coffee, teas, sodas, alcohol, salt, sugar, spices, condiments, dairy and carbs, nuts, seeds, the nightshade family of veggies, Salicylates and oxalates from the diet and intermittent, 24 or 48 hour wet or dry fasting. Some people see results whether they’re vegan, vegetarian or meat eaters and even some do none of the above and still get better over time. Still, the majority of what I’ve read and seen in videos is that a healthy diet and stress-reducing exercises have the most impact on reducing and healing T.
Check out Julian Cowan Hill, Liam Stops Tinnitus, James Karthaus, Peter Studenik and Joey Remenyi. They all healed from tinnitus using their own (and sometimes combined) techniques.
Here’s a list of videos with success stories and healing techniques:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxLNqBGWBhLxphlCH3dC1j3iPcs8hWRme
http://www.pkdiet.com/pdf/oxalate%20lists.pdf
Thanks for the videos I will check them out. I looked at the PDF of oxalate and salicylate foods. I’m going to test if oxalates make my tinnitus worse.
Hey Joe thanks for that article it was very interesting.
Debbie, thanks so much!
Hey Joe, I read through the supplements you’ve tried and I’m wondering if you tried them individually or did you overlap them? You’ve likely heard of the Ménière’s regimen called “JOH” or “John of Ohio” and the rationale behind it is that no single supplement can have much effect on symptoms, whereas a cocktail of certain supplements together can have an impact.
Also, I don’t think you should have given up on pycnogenol so soon but if you decide to try it again be aware that the quality seems to vary wildly between brands. We’ve tried several brands and Source Naturals has the best pycnogenol by far. I didn’t see lysine among the supplements you’ve tried.
Lysine has probably helped my husband the most out of everything we’ve tried so you might want to try it. We just get the Whole Foods brand (L-Lysine Double Strength) and it works great.
Ashley, thanks for the tips. I will try the Pycnogenol by Natural Source and see if that helps. I have never tried lysine but I’ll try that too. Some of the supplements I tried I did take them together while others did not – I honestly forget which ones overlapped. About how long do you think I should try the lysine and pycnogenol before it starts to work?
Hey Joe, if you decide to try pycnogenol again you might want give it at least 2 months. You said you took 100 mg when you tried it before but, as you noted, the study subjects took 150 mg. Maybe not a bad idea to take 200 mg per day as my husband does. As for the lysine, I’m pretty sure my husband noticed an improvement in just a couple of weeks but not a bad idea to give it a solid 1-2 months.
Just remember to take it in between meals. My husband currently takes 1000mg 3x per day but he took 500mg 3x per day for a long time and saw results. Maybe you’re already familiar with the theory that Ménière’s is caused (at least in part) by a viral component, specifically the chicken pox virus.
Studies seem to be all over the map but since my husband has had both chicken pox and shingles we convinced his ENT to prescribe acyclovir, which worked great… for a while. Only recently have I encountered a theory that Ménière’s might also have a fungal component and some have had success with fluconazole or nystatin or natural antifungal remedies.
The never ending theories and cures are enough to drive someone insane. The only thing I’ve found any real consensus on is that stress exacerbates Ménière’s so staying calm is extremely important even when everything is (literally) burning down around us. B vitamins and magnesium glycinate have been helpful for stress and Ménière’s in general.
Out of everything I’m curious to see if you find any improvement with lysine since it helped my husband so much.
Ashley, thanks so much for those dosages. I’m curious, did your husband ever try niacin? I came across some research from the 1940s showing it might help. This was news to me as Ive never heard of this before. Just curuious if you ever heard about it or tried it.
Hey Joe, only recently did I see that different B vitamins (1, 3, 5, 6, and 12 specifically) might help with Ménière’s. He started taking a B multivitamin but we stopped that and have been switching to individual B vitamins so that we can control the doses. We add a new one each week. We made sure to get B12 that dissolves under the tongue because apparently it’s not absorbed otherwise. B3 is definitely on our radar so we’ll see if it helps.
Ashley, yes sometimes B12 doesnt get absorbed well as we get older. B12 needs a carrier molecule (intrinsic factor) to be absorbed. Sometimes we don’t make so much of that when we get older. I agree the sublingual form may be a good option.
Have you tried NAC? I’m experimenting with it now. It raises glutathione levels. Glutathione is a powerful antioxidant. I see there is a drug in phase 3 trials now that is based on boosting a glutathione enzyme.
Hi Joe, just read your comment on NAC. I have the supplement and use it occasionally as I did read it shouldn’t be used daily. Just wondering if you ever heard that and how much you take on a daily basis.
Debbie, the studies usually use about 600 mg. That’s what’s in the supplement I have. I’m not aware of the reasons why someone should not take NAC long term. One thing I would wonder about is if someone had cancer. In theory, raising glutathione might not be good if someone had cancer. I believe this is theoretical but worth keeping in mind. For basically healthy people, Im not aware of any issues.
I have a review on boosting glutatione if it helps:
Review: how to raise glutathione levels
Inflammation will keep you from healing. An anti inflammatory diet is a must. I’ve used it to heal other chronic illnesses. Please check out Liam Stops Tinnitus on YouTube. He healed his T (he got it from noise damage from playing drums) eating non inflammatory foods ie no carbs (which turn to sugar), alcohol, soft drinks, juices, fruits, dairy, and meat all of which create inflammation. Certain herbs and supplements can help too. He also advocates cold showers/baths which bri g down inflammation in the body, meditation and exercise/yoga. His videos have helped hundreds of people heal as can be be seen in his testimonial videos.
Upper cervical for the Atlas C1 and Axis C2 can help as a misaligned upper spine can cause jaw clenching, neck and shoulder problems, tinnitus, vertigo and dizziness. The McKenzie method you can do at home helps move the neck backwards into alignment.
My issue was brought on by neck problems when I jerked it dancercising at home wearing EarPods and stress from lock down. Also, bad posture while on the internet.
The body heals itself if given a chance.
Hope this helps.
Melodye, thanks for the information. Sorry to hear about the tinnitus you have been dealing with. Definitely bad posture while on the web is something a lot of us can empathize with. I had not seen his website. I think tinnitus causes are diverse so I’m not sure if going to a non-inflammatory diet would work for everyone – but it can’t hurt to give it a try for a month or so to see what happens. I hope your tinnitus starts to get better soon.
Help, Joe,
Regardless, the diet will make you feel less bloated and have more energy. I forgot to add that fasting is part of Liam’s protocol which I’ve done occasionally throughout my life. When I fast the tinnitus becomes very low because the body is turning its attention to healing rather than digesting food. When I come off a day fast the T does get louder because the organs are processing toxins.
Let me know how it goes.
Cheers!
Melodye, I’ve also noticed my tinnitus sometimes gets worse too I eat so its interesting you bring this up. The doctors look at me funny when I tell them this happens. There are times it gets worse after a smoothie (fruits and veggies) and oddly there are other times it doesnt get worse after I higher sodium foods – but other times it does get worse. I can’t find a pattern to it but what you said about the body healing itself between means /fasting makes some sense. The only issue is we do have to eat eventually 🙂
Please check out Liam Stops Tinnitus’s videos. He explains everything you just mentioned. You have to watch quite a few but each time you’ll have an ‘a-ha’ moment. He had it for four years and self-financed his travels around the world meeting specialists and did a lot of reading/ research on his own. He healed his T over time through trial and error but has had amazing results with people who sought him out after seeing his videos and his popularity is growing. I’ve corresponded with him myself.
Intrinsically it’s up to all of us to find what works. But from my own experience and countless others eating live green foods, purified or filtered water, and removing carbs, sugar, dairy/ meat will stop the inflammation; carbs because they turn to sugar and dairy/meat are acidic and cause inflammation.
Liam does say that meat organic actually helped heal his T as he had no results with a vegan diet. However, he’s had vegetarians heal their T; even some who only did the diet change without the cold showers or fasting.
He also does mention Meniers and ppl who’ve healed from this.
He believes a lot of our modern diseases are due to bad diet and not the right nutrients. Also WiFi and our electrical / microwave /Smartmeters in our society all cause inflammation in the body. Ppl who’ve turned I off their WiFi have heard their T disappear. Do everyone is different. Trial and error. See what happens.
Meoldye, turning off wifi would be challenging for me. I think overall I eat pretty well but there is always room for improvement -especially during the covid pandemic 🙂
Forget doctors. Especially with T.
Keep a food/ activity diary. You may then state to notice certain patterns.
Melodye, I’ve tried to find patterns. It’s all over the place. I cant find a pattern unfortunately.
Hey Joe! I am late in the game here, and just read this because you had mentioned that your tinnitus gets louder after you have your smoothie. I took a look at it, and I would say this smoothie has a LOT of sugar in it and even though it’s fructose, that’s a lot of inflammatory material there.
Also, I want to mention I notice when I’ve eaten something that may be unfamiliar to my body or something that I know I have a sensitive reaction to (ah, willpower!), my tinnitus is super loud. I don’t know if that would make a difference for you as you have the standing/sitting thing. I haven’t really looked into Tinnitus because I’ve been concentrating on healing from autoimmune, but look forward to diving in.
Hi Patti, thanks for your insights. Ive had an increase in tinnitus after eating /drinking other things that do not have fructose so I dont think there is a connection. Sometimes its gotten worse when I drink cold liquids. While fructose is bad in high amounts, the amounts in fruits is small and likely counterballanced by all the fiber in the fruits/veggies also found in my smoothie. Still, I do appreciate you thinking enough of me to reach out.
I see from your website you are a plexus ambassidor. I have several reviews on plexus you may be interested in. Here’s a few of them
Plexus Joyome Review
Plexus Metaburn Review
Plexus Accelerator Review
Plexus Boost Review
Plexus Slim review
Plexus Hunger Control Review
If you ever turn up anything on tinnutis I have not looked at feel free to send them over. Im always interested in anything which can provide relief.
Joe and Patti, I’ve had tinnitus for probably 30 years and it has increasingly gotten worse as the years go by. I have never noticed food being an issue although recently I have been diagnosing everything that I take internally or do to see if there are changes. The only real change I noticed was when I took that CBD oil which I first wrote about.
I’ve also noticed that since then and maybe because the noise is so much louder that the level constantly changes in intensity from day to day. Something I never noticed before. I just wonder, how much noise can one live with before it drives them crazy. It’s a scary thought since no one seems to be close to a cure of some type.
Debbie, so sorry to hear you are still dealing with the effects of CBD. I know bedtime can be a particularly difficult time. While I do use a celing fan for white noise, one other thing I discovered are youtube videos that play sound, sometimes for 8-12 hours. This is one that I like: rain
Even the screen of my tablet goes dark which again helps to us to stay to sleep.
There’s all sorts of white noise on youtube – fans, cosmic noise, oceans, thunderstorms, and even spaceship engines. I hope some of this helps. I will say a prayer your tinnitus gets better soon.
Read them all, did my own careful and skeptical research, I’m good with the supplements. They’ve changed my life, as well as many family members, friends, and clients. The only ones who did not get results were those who just couldn’t be consistent (except one person who was consistent).
Patti, what supplements do you think helped your tinnitus and how long did it take to see results? Do you know what caused your tinnitus?
I came here originally after a night at a concert and had ringing ears. unforunately I took a medication that caused the nerves in my ear to swell up (polyneuritis I think). It was NOT going away, ringing and sensitivity to sound, finally a health food store clerk who i have known for years suggested alpha lipoic acid 100mg once every two days or so- to help chelate (bind) or detox the chemical residue still in my body. It worked quickly to reduce the painful hypersensitive hearing and slowly, very slowly the tinnitus is going down. I hate having all these scares. First the concert tinnitus, now the medication induced tinnitus.
This sounds really promising. Especially nice is the fact that no ones tinnitus got worse. I would do a trial like this. My sounds don’t change when I stick out my tongue or move my neck. They do get louder when I first wake up. I feel as though as my brain wakes up so do the noises in my head.
Debbie, do let us know what happens. I saw this tinnitus video today. I tried the exercises as he did them but didnt notice any change
He said it may take 4 weeks before noticing a difference. Ill keep trying it and see what happens.
https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/features/tinnitus-how-an-alternative-remedy-is-the-only-thing-that-has-ever-worked-against-the-ringing-a6942451.html
Hi all…sorry to hear about all your troubles with this bothersome disease…hope that link provides some good leads…my own “curse” seems to be belly fat….skinny all over except the belly. Nothing works and will NOT go lipo….i am in perfect healtn otherwise….
BB, interesting article link thanks for the link. I read it. The reporter – Peter Popham is an investigative journalist. The title of the article is a little clickbaity because Peter doesn’t exactly tell us the exact herbal recipe the Chinese doctor prescribed. Basically, he says after the doctor inspects the color of his tongue, and prescribes ” herbs, which include goji berries, chrysanthemum flowers, turmeric, little cubes of white stuff, he haun pi, known in English as “bark of the tree of happiness”, slices of beige-coloured fungus and some nine others.
What are those other 9 things? He doesn’t tell us.
Do you think your belly fat is linked to your tinnitus?
Joe…i am in perfect health … the belly fat issue is primarily cosmetic. Because i am such health nut, it makes me miserable because i cannot crack it…maybe i should count my blessings…i offered the link on tinnitus solely because i was moved by your story with that disease and thought some crowdsourcing would help…i am impressed by your humility and the objectivity you bring to your work here….all best.
BB, I understand. the good news is your health is going so well! We often take that for granted. Did you ever do the tape measure test of your abdominals? wrap a tape measure around your waist at your belly button. Dont hold in your belly. let it hang out. If you are less than 40 inches you are doing ok from a health standpoint.
I do appreciate the link. I wish the reporter had listed those other herbs. I would have tried it 🙂
BB you might want to try the graston technique (videos on youtube) to break up potential scar tissue over your stomach that often looks the same as some belly fat. I too find it impossible to have super abs, even with alot of excercises, and still my same weight as I was in college, but my abs got way better looking after going over my stomach with a soft tissue mobilization tool, many times.
An interesting development…
https://labblog.uofmhealth.org/lab-report/first-test-specially-timed-signals-ease-tinnitus-symptoms
BB, sounds promising 🙂
Hi again, I was just wondering if anyone on this site has ever tried Tinnitus Retraining or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy? These two subjects keep coming up in my searches for tinnitus health.
Hi Debbie, I have heard some say you can retrain how you perceive the ringing but I have not tried it. Has anyone else?
All it does is help you cope. An anti inflammatory diet is a must. To heal it read my previous comment. Check out Liam Stops Tinnitus on YouTube.
Thanks Melodye 🙂
Hi Joe, you know you are probably correct about the HIPPA agreement, but to clarify I first went to a presentation from this company on stem cells before an actual appointment and that is where I believe they mentioned him and a couple of other athletes who had used their company, Along with several everyday people that got great results so I’m sure they had to get permission from all these people before making this video and using their names and talking about them.
Debbie, that is good to know 🙂
Joe,
Thanks for the prompt and informative reply! I’ve actually read some additional stuff regarding creatine but will have to check when home! I talked with my doctor Bout creatine and like you, he believes it to be safe and has no issue with me using it.
I’m going to start a trial today and see what if any effects that it might have over a several month period. I’ll keep you and this thread posted.
C
Charles, sounds good I will look forward to hearing what happens 🙂
Hello all,
I stumbled upon this page and have found it to be most interesting. I’ve suffered from tinnitus for as long as I can remember and believe it to have been caused by noise exposure while on the job as a pilot.
I have tried every remedy with few exceptions and have not found any that have helped. Recently, I read that creatine monohydrate might have a beneficial effect and wondered if anyone else might have gone down this path already.
Thanks again,
C
Hi Charles, creatine monohydrate is probably the most highly researched supplement on Earth. Most of that research involves exercise where creatine has been shown to help improve muscle strength and power. Here are some reviews on creatine I’ve written
I’ve never heard creatine helps tinnitus symptoms but you got me curious so I did some digging into this. I located this gunnie pig study published in 2007 which seemed to show less hearing loss in gunnie pigs who were given creatine or an anti-oxidant compound called Tempol (I checked and did not see Tempol supplements being sold)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2680083/ The study did not mention tinnitus.
When I searched, I did see people talking about how creatine supplements helped reduce tinnitus symptoms. One person said he used 5-6 grams a day and noticed a 50% decrease in tinnitus after 6-8 weeks. That’s just his experience and I’d point out 5-6 grams is a bit more than weight lifters often take (2-3g/day).
Other than the gunnie pig study, I didn’t see any human trials. So I can’t say if it helps or not. I do want to investigate this further. Charles, if you have seen any creatine/tinnitus studies I missed, please do share them. I’d love to read them.
Creatine is generally considered safe in healthy people. I’d speak to a doctor if anyone had kidney or liver issues or high blood pressure/ heart disease. If anyone tries creatine, keep in mind creatine will make you heavier. The increase in body weight is due to water retention. It’s not fat weight. You may notice you’re getting heaver within a few weeks of starting creatine.
The increase in body weight may be anywhere from 5-15 pounds (most people won’t gain 15 pounds but that’s the most which people have reported to me). Once you stop taking creatine, your body weight should eventually go back to normal.
Has anybody ever tried creatine for their tinnitus?
Joe,
Thought I would update on my Creatine adventures. After many months of use I’m unable to detect any noticeable difference in Tinnitus level. On the plus side I believe it did help with some strength and muscle gains.
I’m still searching for something as “T” is definitely an issue for me.
C
Charles, thanks for the update. Sorry creatine didn’t work for you. Creating is very well known for helping muscle strength so your strength gains make a lot of sense. That’s at least something 🙂
My tinnitus has gotten worse. I’m re-experimenting with coq10 now. I think it may be helping but its too soon to tell.
Hopeful for you, Joe!
Patti, I think it might but I want to give it a wee bit more time. Someone did tell me Coq10 helped her tinnitus. Have you tried Coq10?