Overview
Tinnitus is a self-induced ringing in the ear and is often a precursor to deafness.
Tinnitus is a subjective sensation of sound in the ear or head, caused by a disorder of the auditory function. If it is caused by an ear lesion, it often coexists with deafness or vertigo. If it is caused by other factors, it may not be accompanied by deafness or vertigo.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis of a patient with tinnitus requires a minimum of a thorough audiological evaluation. The identification of sensorineural deafness requires examination with the aforementioned tests to differentiate between sensorineural and neural deafness, and pulsatile tinnitus requires examination of the vascular system including carotid and vertebral arteries to rule out arterial obstruction, aneurysms and vascular tumors.
Treatment
The ability of patients to tolerate tinnitus varies. Treatment should be directed at the underlying disease, as relief of the underlying disease may improve the tinnitus. The elimination of concomitant deafness often leads to relief of tinnitus. Although there are no specific medications or surgical treatments for tinnitus, many patients find that tinnitus can be masked in a musical setting and even fall asleep to radio music.
Some patients benefit from the use of a tinnitus masking device, which is a device similar to a hearing aid, but dispenses a more comfortable sound than tinnitus. Electrical stimulation of the inner ear, such as the use of a cochlear implant, often reduces tinnitus, but only in people who are profoundly deaf.
Precautions
If the prevalence of tinnitus is estimated at 15% based on foreign survey data, there are close to 200 million tinnitus patients in China, and at least 20 million people have severe tinnitus and need help from a doctor. It seems that there is a long way to go in the diagnosis, treatment and research of tinnitus.
Common causes of tinnitus and precautions.
1.Noise: The sound of storm shock and prolonged noise exposure can lead to hearing loss and tinnitus production. For high-risk groups (working in high-intensity noise environment), attention should be paid to noise protection. Such as reducing noise sources or wearing protective earmuffs, earplugs, etc.. In addition, we should be careful not to use Walkman headphones for a long time and at a high volume in a noisy environment.
2. Mental tension and fatigue: When you are in a state of high mental tension and physical fatigue for a long time, tinnitus is likely to be aggravated. Therefore, it is beneficial to adjust the pace of work, relax the emotions of tinnitus patients, and shift the attention to tinnitus.
3. Special medications: When tinnitus patients visit the doctor due to other diseases, please do not forget to tell the doctor that you are suffering from tinnitus. This is because some medications can aggravate your existing tinnitus symptoms.
4. Bad habits: Caffeine and alcohol can often aggravate tinnitus symptoms: Smoking can make blood oxygen drop, and inner ear hair cells are an extremely oxygen-sensitive cell, so lack of oxygen can cause damage to hair cells, so be careful to change bad habits.
Although there is no extraordinary prevention and care for tinnitus, according to the traditional Chinese medicine, it can be “eaten up” by focusing on the dietary aspect.
We should pay attention to reduce the fatty and sweet diet to prevent the accumulation of phlegm and aggravate the disease. For those who suffer from tinnitus and deafness due to kidney deficiency, it is especially important to pay attention to work and rest time, reduce warm and dry food, and pay special attention to diet for patients with spleen deficiency.
Here are some dietary guidelines to prevent and reduce tinnitus
1. Reduce the intake of fat
A large intake of fatty foods can increase blood lipids, increase blood viscosity and cause arteriosclerosis. The inner ear is most sensitive to blood supply disorders, and when blood circulation disorders occur, this can lead to a lack of nutrition in the auditory nerve, resulting in deafness.
The total daily fat intake of middle-aged people should be controlled at about 40 grams, and they should eat less of various animal offal, fatty meat, cream, egg yolk, caviar, fried food and other foods rich in lipids.
2, eat more iron-rich food
Iron deficiency tends to harden red blood cells, reduce the ability to transport oxygen, and insufficient supply of nutrients to the ear, which can impair the function of auditory cells and lead to hearing loss. Iron supplementation, on the other hand, can effectively prevent and delay the occurrence of tinnitus and deafness in middle-aged and elderly people.
The daily intake of iron should not be less than 12 mg for people over 45 years old, regardless of gender.
Commonly used foods, nori contains more iron, 46, 8 mg of iron per 100 grams of nori, shrimp skin 16, 5 mg, jellyfish skin 17, 6 mg, black sesame 26, 3 mg, yellow cauliflower 12, 6 mg, black fungus 11, 9 mg, amaranth 10, 5 mg, parsley, wood ear vegetable iron content second only to amaranth, soy products average iron content of about 4 to 6 mg.
3.Eat more food containing zinc
There are many factors that lead to tinnitus and deafness in middle-aged and elderly people, and zinc deficiency is an important reason. The zinc content in the cochlea is much higher than that of other organs. The zinc content in the cochlea is significantly lower in elderly people over 60 years old, which affects the function of the cochlea and leads to hearing loss.
You should eat more zinc-rich foods such as fish, beef, chicken, eggs, various seafood, apples, oranges, walnuts, cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbage, radishes, etc. every day.
4, often eat food with blood-activating effect
Activating blood stasis can expand blood vessels and improve blood viscosity, which is conducive to maintaining normal microcirculation of small blood vessels in the ear.
You can often eat black fungus, leek, red wine, yellow wine, etc.
5.Make a habit of drinking milk
Milk contains almost all known vitamins to vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin E and carotene.
These aforementioned vitamins are helpful in preventing and improving blood circulation and tinnitus symptoms along with the absorption and utilization of calcium.
Self-therapy for tinnitus in the elderly
1. Breath-holding method. Sit in meditation, clench your teeth, pinch your nostrils with two fingers, open your eyes angrily, and make the gas run into your ears until you feel the sound of the roar. Several times a day, for 2-3 days.
2, rub the palm method. Sit down and rub your palms 50 times, and press the ear doors on both sides while your palms are hot. Do this 6 times for 2-3 days in a row. The treatment should be light and pure in mood to be effective.
3.Ear plugging method. Musk 0.5 grams, 14 gold scorpion, research finely and store in a covered bottle. When you are about to use it, take a fresh lotus leaf, rub it lightly, wrap a small amount of powder and plug the affected ear overnight, then take it out the next morning.
Pay attention to the diet for tinnitus. In order to improve blood circulation in the ear, saturated fat and cholinesterol in the diet should be reduced. 100-6000 mg of niacin per day can help lower cholesterol. Note: Do not take excessive amounts of niacin without medical monitoring as side effects such as liver toxicity can occur.
Studies have shown that most people who suffer from tinnitus are deficient in vitamin B12, and nutritionists recommend taking 6 micrograms of the vitamin daily. In addition, 5,000 to l0000 IU of vitamin A daily is at least partially effective for tinnitus. Quit smoking, alcohol and caffeine, which can make tinnitus worse. Use less salt in your diet, as salt can aggravate tinnitus by causing fluid to collect in the ear. Avoid taking too much aspirin, as it can make tinnitus worse.
Avoid loud noises as they can aggravate your existing tinnitus. If you can’t sleep because of tinnitus, try turning on the radio and listening to a beautiful piece of music that can mask harmful sounds. Listening to natural sounds such as the sound of running water can also reduce tinnitus.