I have decided to start to promote this blog in some blog directories etc. Some of these require that I link back to them. I shall use this entry for any such links in the future:

I wish everybody a Happy New Year 2012. If you are suffering from tinnitus, hopefully a year that goes some way to improve if not cure the condition. Maybe some of the information here can help you to achieve this. Or visit my web page Tinnitus Advice and Tips for a Treatment and Cure, or my Tinnitus Forum. Thomas

With the winter now almost upon us, I want to address a question that I frequently come across, namely if the weather can have an effect on the tinnitus. The simple answer is, yes. One has to remember that tinnitus is a nervous condition, and all kind of environmental and psychological influences can affect the nervous system. It is not necessarily only the colder temperatures in the winter as such, but also the fact that adverse weather conditions and darker days may have a negative impact on the person's mood, which can aggravate the condition similar to stress. So one should bear this in mind if one notices an aggravation of the tinnitus not only during the winter months, but generally during prolonged adverse weather conditions. As far as cold temperature are concerned, I always found it beneficial to wear a woolly hat in the winter outdoors, preferably one that covers the ears as well (I found this particularly important if it was also windy). So whilst there is nothing to worry about in the way of adverse long term effects of bad weather on the tinnitus, it is always advised to take some simple precautions to minimize any negative impact here. Thomas

Many people may consider wearing earplugs as 'uncool', but in very loud environments (above 90dB sound pressure), they are very much recommended or even required (for instance in certain jobs) in order to protect the hearing (for a corresponding chart with examples of noise levels and maximum exposure times without hearing protection see http://www.gcaudio.com/resources/howtos/loudness.html). So by all means, ear plugs or other hearing protection should generally be used to protect the hearing in those loud environments (see for instance http://www.earplugs.de for a wide variety of earplugs (you may find some of these cheaper on Ebay or Amazon). Otherwise the risk of hearing damage and/or tinnitus can become very real. Hearing protection is particularly important if one has tinnitus already, as any kind of noise can aggravate the condition, especially in the early stages (the first 6 months). Many people suffering from tinnitus have actually at some stage an over-sensitivity to virtually all sounds (hyperacusis), and in these cases it may even be beneficial to use earplugs in more normal environments as well (for instance when using the vacuum cleaner at home). The drawback with using earplugs with tinnitus is that, due to the external background noises being reduced, the tinnitus appears as even more prominent, which could cause even more emotional upset for some people. However, for others it is more important to have the feeling of being safe from a further aggravation of their condition due to sounds (just being anxious about a possible aggravation can aggravate the condition by itself). I would recommend that everybody handles this as it is best for the well-being of the person. This obviously can only be found from the individual experience, and it may therefore take some time to figure out the right strategy here. Thomas

The connection may not be immediately obvious in the beginning, but nutrition can have a significant influence on the severity of the tinnitus, at least at times. On has to remember that tinnitus is a nervous condition, and many substances in food and drinks can affect the nervous system one way or another. Generally speaking, substances that stimulate the nervous system will aggravate the condition, those that calm it will alleviate it. So for most people it is for instance advisable to avoid caffeine (coffee, tea, cola and related stimulants), but also alcohol (which is also a nerve stimulant). With drinks it is thus rather straightforward: avoid caffeine and alcohol, but on the other hand drink enough fluid to prevent any dehydration (which would aggravate the condition as well). With food the situation is slightly more complicated: generally, it is advisable to reduce the amount of salt and other spices, as these tend to affect the nervous system and thus the tinnitus as well. This may be relatively easy to control if one does the cooking by oneself, but in case of restaurant- or instant food this is not always possible. So it is not uncommon that people complain about an increase of their tinnitus after being out for a meal. A frequent culprit here is for instance the flavour enhancer Monosodium Glutamate (an amino acid) which is frequently used in Asian cooking, Pizzas and other snack foods, Instant Soups and Sauces etc. For packaged food it should be designated there, usually as 'Flavour Enhancer', 'Monosodium Glutamate' or with the code 'E621'. In restaurants however it may well not be mentioned on the menu, so you might have to ask beforehand in order to find out. Anyway, even if one happens to consume something that aggravates the tinnitus, the effect should only last for a couple of days at best. Just try to figure out what could have been responsible and eliminate this particular food for a while. It may take a while, but with a little bit of experimenting in this sense, one can thus minimize any adverse effect of nutrition. Thomas