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If you are one of the millions of people in the world who have tinnitus (around 10% to 20% of the world’s population), you will undoubtedly have heard hundreds of times phrases such as “tinnitus has no cure“, “if you drink coffee or alcohol the ringing gets worse“, etc.

In the absence of definitive information about what causes tinnitus and what measures to take, myths are being constructed around a condition that leaves the scientific community confused and do nothing but gain strength and become considered as facts.

Nothing is further from reality…

(Note: go to this article to read “What is tinnitus, its causes and treatments?“)

In such a scenario, knowing the truth about tinnitus can give you the key to effectively face this condition and reduce its symptoms so you can improve your quality of life.

Pay attention and discard the following myths about tinnitus forever:

#1 Tinnitus has no cure

Epic fail. This is the first thing the doctor tells you when you are diagnosed with tinnitus for the first time, «it has no cure».

Although a single effective treatment has not been demonstrated for all cases of tinnitus, there are different treatments that have improved the level of ringing experienced by patients and, in some cases, eliminated completely.

This is the case with cognitive-behavioural therapy, meditation, controlled consumption of vitamin supplements, sound therapy, or alternative medicine. 

Moral of the story: do not give up, what has not worked for another person can work for you, and vice versa.

#2 Tinnitus is a disease

Tinnitus is not a disease but a physical condition that can result from a wide range of underlying conditions, such as exposure to loud sounds, neurological damage, vascular disease or even damage from brain trauma. It is a neurosensory reaction in the brain, to damage in the primary auditory cortex of the brain.

#3 I am the only one who has tinnitus, I must be a weirdo

Normally, one hears the word tinnitus for the first time on the day the doctor diagnoses it. This is because it is a condition that is not widely accepted and treated as such. Many people who hear ringing in their ears never go to the doctor and, once diagnosed, not much support is provided to the patient.

However, 10% to 20% of the world population has tinnitus, which means that, on average, about 1 billion people in the world have tinnitus, 1 billion! No, you’re definitely not alone.

(Note: Go to this article to find out “Which 30 celebrities suffer from tinnitus, just like you“)

#4 Tinnitus is linked to hearing loss

The causes of tinnitus are not clear to date, yet there are different factors that could cause this condition. These are not only hearing loss, but also exposure to loud sounds or music, wax plugs, middle ear infection, head injury and stress.

(Note: Go to this article to read “The ranking of the 7 causes of tinnitus“)

Besides having hearing loss does not cause tinnitus, and vice versa, having tinnitus does not mean that you will develop deafness at all.

#5 Tinnitus is a product of your mind

The fact that there is no conclusive test with tangible results that determine the volume level of the sounds perceived by patients with tinnitus has caused it more than once to be associated with a state of mental health.

But tinnitus is very real and affects millions of people around the world every day. Consult a specialist and find out what steps you can take to deal with this condition.

In your community there may be therapy, meditation, specialist patient groups and workshops that can help you deal with the affliction.

#6 Hearing aids will not relieve my tinnitus

Today, many hearing aids come with a special program that provides a background sound that can help minimise the discomfort of ringing in the ears caused by tinnitus which, combined with an improvement in the hearing quality of the hearing aid wearer, can make a big difference.

#7 If I change my diet, my tinnitus will go away

Who has never believed this? In my days of initial desperation with my tinnitus, I changed my entire diet and even became a vegan. However, there is no evidence to date that by changing your diet your tinnitus may disappear or improve.

There are certain substances though which are advisable for patients with tinnitus to avoid, such as caffeine or alcohol. However, there have been some cases in which the same foods that were discouraged to some patients turned out to be beneficial for others. Therefore, it is you who should try and check which foods do or don’t affect your condition.

In any case, a balanced and healthy diet rich in fruit and vegetables and low in fats and sugars is always recommended for everyone, not just patients with tinnitus!

#8 Tinnitus only appears by listening to loud music or wearing headphones

Tinnitus has a multifactorial cause and there is no single cause-effect relationship. Listening to music through the headphones continuously or exposing the ear to very loud sounds can certainly cause tinnitus, but it can also be caused by high blood pressure, brain damage, ear infection or stress (as it was my case).

#9 There are pills that when you take them your tinnitus will go away

This is my favorite. While it has been proven that there are some vitamins that have had a beneficial effect in the treatment of tinnitus in a large number of patients, unfortunately there is no pill on the market to cure tinnitus outright.

This is obvious otherwise you and me would not be here right now.

(Note: go to this article to read “4 vitamins that can help with your tinnitus“)

Unfortunately, the Internet is full of websites that market pills that promise to cure tinnitus if taken. Take great care with these websites and remember that there is no miracle solution outside the treatments that have already been mentioned before on this site.

Where there are desperate and uneducated sufferers there will always be unscrupulous individuals ready to profit from other’s misfortune.

#10 Tinnitus is a new condition caused by the widespread use of technology and in ancient times was non existent

The fact that tinnitus is a recent condition is a myth. The term tinnitus derives from the Latin voice tinnire, which means ‘tinkling’. The Egyptians documented it more than 5000 years ago.

Subsequently, no less than 3000 years ago, Hippocrates, widely considered the father of medicine, used three words to describe it: echos (sound), drums (buzzing) and psophos (light sound).

Illustrious characters have suffered from tinnitus throughout history to this day, such as Vincent van Gogh, Goya, Beethoven and Darwin, the famed evolutionsit. So nope, it is not a new thing.