Salt, tobacco, alcohol, caffeine, aspirin and stress are included in the list of factors that may increase tinnitus or vertigo. Is it important to apply all the restrictions automatically?
Saltas a kind of food is made of crystals that are composed, mainly, of sodium ion and chloride ion in a proportion of 1:1. In chemistry, there are many types of salts, but you can't find them in the common kitchen. At home, restaurants, hotels and food industry you will find the sodium chloride as the most common spice.
Excessive usage of these minerals may cause health problems. Body salt beyond the normal range may cause muscle cramps, dizziness and other symptoms that are associated with electrolyte disturbance. Drinking quickly too much water or receiving infusion of a lot of water + glucose 5% intra venously with low consumption of salt may dilute the body fluids and cause water intoxication.
Long term salt intake in high dose is a risk factor for hypertension, stroke and cardiovascular disease, such as left ventricular hypertrophy and cardiovascular disease that is not associated with hypertension. Heartburn, osteoporosis, stomach cancer, edema, relapse of renal disease, duodenal ulcer and gastric ulcer. In meniere's disease patients it was shown that there is accumulation of fluids in the inner ear.
An experimental study showed that drainage of the fluid by surgery did not improve the prognosis of these patients. A conservative approach of treating the suspected inner ear edema is justified because there are no side effects. It includes: salt restriction and diuretic medication. Mild restriction of salt means eliminating the dry sources of salt, such as salted seeds, peanuts, almonds or salted cakes.
Tobaccois a vegetarian product that can be found in leaves of many plants.The highest concentration of the tobacco can be found in the leaves of plants genus nicotiana. The popular consumption of tobacco is by smoking. Most of the health hazards are negative effects on heart and lungs, such as: MI (Myocardial Infarction), COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), Emphysema, Stroke (Brain Infarct), Cancer (Lung, Larynx, Mouth, Pancreas). In the literature of tinnitus, tobacco is considered as a precipitating factor.
Recently (October 2007), part of a group of several hundred workers employed by Southampton tobacco factory who claim industrial deafness, reported that they suffer from tinnitus. Representatives of the tobacco company said that there is no ground to the claim.
Alcohol
Caffeineis part of many drinks such as coffee, tea and sodas. For industrial purposes it is extracted from the cherries of the coffee plant and the leaves of the bush tea. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system of humans, and have a diuretic effect in new consumers of the molecule. The mechanisms that may be related to the tinnitus sufferers is lowering of the threshold for seizures. Tinnitus can be considered a type of seizure that may respond to some drugs in a similar pattern as epilepsy. Caffeine may increase tinnitus, vertigo or symptoms of meniere's disease .
Before making a decision to eliminate the caffeine from food, it is important to test this possibility and see if it is relevant to a specific patient, and what is the daily dose that may increase tinnitus, vertigo or symptoms of meniere's disease.
Aspirin, the trade name for the Acetyl-Salicylic Acid. The medication was recommended as analgesic treatment (pain relieve) or antipyretic (reduce fever). Later the anti inflammatory effect was found, and the side effect of anti platelet aggregation was used to decrease damage from blood clots.
Risk for Myocardial infarction, Stroke (Brain infarction), TIA (Stroke of short duration, called transient ischemic attack) can be reduced by preventive consumption of aspirin.
Tinnitus and Gastro Intestinal bleeding are the main known side effects. The GI bleeding is related to the anti platelate mechanism of the Aspirin, due to the inhibitory effect on the production of Thromboxane. A fatal side effect may happen in children or teen ages under 19 who received aspirin to relieve symptoms of chickenpox and is called: Reye's syndrome. Only rare cases of adults may appear. The first symptoms of this condition includes high fever, vomiting, lethargy, nightmares and confusion or other mental symptoms.
Today, the recommended daily dose for adults is very low, and the probability of tinnitus as a side effect of aspirin became rare. The mechanism of damage is unknown. Ben-Gang Peng, Shanping Chen and Xi Lin offer a mechanism that includes interference with the glutamate neuro transmitter in the cochlea, based on animal study.
Aspirin is an example of a medication that may cause tinnitus or increase the loudness of an existing tinnitus. Such effect can be found in more then 260 medications that are approved for usage in humans.
Stressis the hardest problem. When it comes from inside it can be managed. Biofeedback, hypnosis, meditation or psychotropic drugs can reduce anxiety and stress. When it is external such as: marital problems with aggressive partner, a dying close relative or friend, unemployment, active war, anticipation of war or investigation by tax authorities, the victim is passive and can not do much.
It is easy to say: reduce the stress, and hard to do.
