Can Your Diet Affect Tinnitus?
Tinnitus can be very distressing, or at least distracting at the very best, so those who suffer from it will be surprised to hear that the foods they’re eating could be making it worse.
While chronic tinnitus isn’t particularly understood by professionals yet, a large number of people have been reporting that their symptoms are worse after eating or drinking certain things.
So, can we avoid tinnitus by changing our diet?
Alcohol
It’s been known for a while that heavy drinking can temporarily cause both hearing loss and tinnitus, but some experts believe that continual abuse can cause longterm damage.
The rest who enjoy moderate drinking may not experience any issues, but for some, it can trigger both tinnitus and balance issues.
Salt
Tinnitus is also one of the symptoms of a disease: Those suffering from ear pressure, then tinnitus, dizziness and hearing loss may have Ménière’s disease — especially if it’s in the family.
The cause is the inner ear (past the ear drum) having a build up of fluid or pressure, but after 200 years, it’s still not full understood.
However, a spike of salt intake is known to trigger the symptoms by altering the pressure. So, reduce salt as much as possible in all food if you are experiencing these four issues together.
Fat
A study in 2020 of 34,000 people recorded the average person’s everyday diet and any hearing difficulties.
Those with more tinnitus were found to be consuming more calcium, iron and fat. Researchers concluded that fatty foods were likely affecting the health of blood vessels in and around the inner ear, resulting in inflammation causing more issues.
Meat & Vitamin B12
The same research as above also found that those with higher intakes of B12 from eating a lot of meat experienced less tinnitus.
However, it’s not generally advised to eat too much meat, so meat-eaters out there shouldn’t necessarily feel the need to eat more, rather find other ways to increase B12 within the recommended daily amount.
Vitamin D
A more recent study in 2023 found that tinnitus was more common in those with lower Vitamin D levels—22% lower, to be precise.
More people are needed for this particular study as not many were involved, but it was a highly controlled experiment that has become a talking point among researchers in the field.
While this hasn’t been conclusive evidence that Vitamin D can affect tinnitus, those who suffer from the condition may want to ensure they are getting enough through diet, supplements or the sun.
Protein & Caffeine
Another study that requires more work but still uncovered interesting results was in Italy, where caffeine, butter, poultry, prosciutto, and legumes were found to reduce the development of tinnitus.
A varied diet with high protein and moderate caffeine looked promising, although this has fallen short of becoming a recommendation without further research—especially considering that some participants reported that caffeine actually makes their symptoms worse.
Conclusion
A number of studies here aren’t conclusive evidence of a diet change, so it may be worth consulting a professional before changing any particular aspects of your diet.
However, Meniere’s disease is known to be triggered less often with a low-salt diet, but salt is important to retain fluids and is therefore necessary in moderation for most diets.
Likewise, fat is necessary in some form, but diets high in fat can worsen effects of tinnitus.
If you think that food is triggering your tinnitus, then write down exactly what you were eating before hearing a noise. You may find a that one particular part of your diet is making it worse.
At the end of the day, tinnitus is a symptom of hearing loss: The brain is having to work harder to hear the same sounds, so when it’s quiet, you’ll hear the extra effort through phantom noises that no one else can hear.
If you would like help managing tinnitus, we have more information on the Tinnitus page.
