After years of using supplements, I basically have stopped taking supplements in my journey to cure my tinnitus. I stopped taking supplements a few months ago or so. However, once in awhile I do take taurine, but not regularly. I also do continue to take a lactose digestive supplement but I don’t think this impacts my tinnitus.
So, why did I stop taking the supplements. Bottom line is I ran out of some of my supplements including my turmeric. As I shopped around to reorder, I decided to just start adding ground turmeric (spices) to my food rather than buy supplements. I am a very practical person so I literally decided to add turmeric spice directly to my (instant) coffee. I then started to add ground pepper to help with absorption. I do not measure, I just add what a feel is enough. Very non-scientific. I have to say I like the taste of it. Furthermore, I now add ginger to my coffee. The combination adds a little bit of a kick to my coffee. The downside of turmeric I am learning is it may not be good for people who are prone to developing oxalate based kidney stones.
So far I have not noticed any profound impact to my tinnitus either from stopping the supplements or adding spices to my coffee. My current belief around using supplements to try to cure tinnitus is that unless your tinnitus is directly or indirectly due to low levels of a certain supplement, it will not be acutely helpful. There may be indirect, systemic benefits which may lead to improving the symptoms or underlying condition, but may be hard to show cause and effect. This is only my own opinion and hypothesis. Perhaps, a supplement would be helpful if optimal levels 0f the supplement would create ideal conditions for healing or other beneficial process towards relieving tinnitus. I have read that some studies have shown some supplements have been shown to have some benefit in preventing hearing damage from noise exposure such as I believe alpha lipoic acid. I am not sure if this benefit has any impact on healing existing hearing damage from noise exposure. Bottom line though I have decided to stop focusing on supplements as my method to cure my tinnitus. The one supplement that I seem to come across as having some level of benefit with tinnitus is ginkgo biloba; I personally did not experience any benefit. Maybe, one day I will return to using supplements more regularly especially in regards to optimizing my health and wellness. I think my diet changes which I mention below, however, are also providing much of these benefits but through food rather than pills or capsules. I am not downplaying the benefits of some supplements, but I have not noticed any negative impacts from ceasing my supplements with the context that my diet has improved in my opinion.
I have been keto intermittent fasting for about 3 months. If you are unfamiliar with ketogenic dieting and intermittent fasting, I basically my diet is high in fat, moderate in protein and very low in carbohydrates. My consumption of vegetables especially kale and spinach as well as healthy oils is signigificant. I also fast as in do not eat for 12 to 16 hours every day. Some call this time restricted eating I believe. I do not keto intermittent fast to try to improve my tinnitus. I have done it to eliminate visceral fat to reduce my risk of diabetes. In the past, 3 months, I have lost 15-18 pounds. I have not noticed any impact to my tinnitus.
I do regularly consume turmeric, ginger and pepper. My reasoning now for consuming these spices are I like the taste of them and I understand they have anti-inflammatory benefits. The benefits of turmeric are reported to be quite extensive.
Although I am not eating this way to cure my tinnitus, I do believe it is helping and more so optimizing my overall health and therefore creating a conditions for my body to heal itself.
If you are interested in intermittent fasting, I learned a lot from reading Dr. Jason Fung’s work including this book which you can read more about through this Amazon affiliate link The Complete Guide to Fasting: Heal Your Body Through Intermittent, Alternate-Day, and Extended Fasting
Have I given up on curing myself. Definitely not. I am continuing to try to understand my tinnitus and hearing loss. It is not without mild frustration at times especially when it interferes in my conversations which is often. Similarly to what Einstein said, I have not failed, I have discovered ways that do not work for me.
I think my path will focus on meditation as well as optimal overall health. I will cure myself.