Natural Remedies for Tinnitus: Ringing Ears & Nerve Support

Tilting Your Head Back

Posted by Vj (Bc, Canada) on 01/19/2014
★★★★★

RE: Tilting your head back. Well that's interesting. I didn't drink any water while tilting my head back, but the tilting my head back worked immediately! It did not work if I tilted my head forward and into my chest, in fact it made it worse. Must be a neck issue with me.

Swedish Bitters

Posted by Rob (Kentucky) on 07/12/2021

In the book “The Book of Herbal Wisdom”. In it is a section on Meniere's and Tinnitus. There is a part where Swedish Bitters tincture was given by drops into the ear plugged with a cottonball three times a day. In most cases, the ringing buzzing sound was reduced or completely gone.

An interesting adjunctive use of Swedish bitters is for earache and ear infections where someone is recommending putting tubes in the ears to drain them. Swab the ear canals with Vitamin E from 100 I.u. capsules to reduce any irritation (if needed). Then insert a cotton ball soaked with Swedish bitters into each ear canal. I like to put 10-20 drops into the ear canal first so it makes contact with the eardrum. (Don't worry, it does not hurt). The antibiotic with a detergent effect of the swedish bitters acts to drain the middle ear into the mouth through the short tubes provided for that purpose, known as the eustachian tubes. Change the cotton balls morning and night or more if needed. Usually overnight or throughout the day is enough time for the Swedish bitters to clean the drain and get the plugs out of the tubes which empty into the mouth.

Many recorded cases of hearing problems have cleared up with the use of this procedure when used for several days.

Lymphatic Drainage Massage

Posted by Tara (Memphis, Tn, USA) on 02/01/2013
★★★★★

I tried the massage and it did pop my left ear and the noise stopped. I didn' think that it was going to work on my right ear, but I massaged from my ear to my chin where I remembered my lymph nodes swelling when I was sick. It stopped the ringing, but I didn't hear the pop. My hearing was better in my left ear, but it was never as bad as my right ear which I sleep on at night. I can't believe it. I will keep doing this. I already had garlic oil on my ears and was reading the website. I have been cleaning my ears with hydrogen peroxide inserted with a needleless syringe for at least a year and my hearing has vastly improved. I clean with hydrogen peroxide about once a week. I was really impressed with the massage. My left ear feels cleared but not my right ear. The ringing stopped in both ears, but my ringing wasn't very bad or all that bothersome. It was however amazing and the ringing is gone. I will definately keep doing this. I am going to start massage on all my lymph nodes sites on my body.

Alpha Lipoic Acid

Posted by Joleneal (Phenix City, Al) on 06/06/2012
★☆☆☆☆

I take ALA for my numbness due to my diabetes. I take 300 mg a day. Unfortunately, it is sporadic as I sometimes blow off my supplements on the weekend. It hasn't touched my tinnitus yet - but it just started a month ago and I have not been consistent in my supplement intake.

However, the 1st ENT I went to said it was a nerve issue, and ALA is support for nerves. So, I'm going to double my dose and see what happens.

Alpha Lipoic Acid

Posted by Diver (Bern, Switzerland) on 12/03/2014

Hi. My doctor explained two types of Tinnitus:

1-The one caused by inter ear damage and

2-The one caused by brain's wrongly interpretation (possible inner brain problems).

So for which one ALA or ACV type solutions are helping. Only ear related one? thank you.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Posted by Sherif (Cairo, Egypt) on 03/15/2012

I'm tinnitus sufferer 4yrs ago, I'm member of lot of tinnintus groups at face book. One person had T 3YRS AGO. SHE USED ANTIFUNGAL for nails containing apple cider vinegar and the tinnitus disappear completely.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Posted by Priya (Oroville, Wa) on 07/10/2011
★★★★★

I came to this site just last night. I have been experiencing ringing in my ear for 2 days. Started with a sore throat then went to my right ear. Prior to this I was having a low in and out humming happening for months. Went to get my hearing checked and all was good. I'm 58 and in good health I keep active. Last night I took my first dose of ACV in water 2 Tblsp with 8 oz of water, Organic _____s brand. It help some the noise isn't as loud. I took my second dose this morning and going for my 3rd. I also did a ear coning to help pull the ear wax out. I did this this morning. It's easy with help and feels fine. My right ear had 2X's as much wax in as my left. Hears to hearing better, even if I still am a bit off centered. I'll continue to do this along with taking Tumeric with black pepper it helps to assimulate the tumeric. I didn't measure the tumeric I put some in water and on my food last night. I'll let you know the results thanks for having this site.

Tilting Your Head Back

Posted by Jen (Alexandria, Va) on 02/20/2011
★★★★★

I've had ringing in my ears for about 4 or 5 days. This my first experience with Tinnitus other than hearing feedback from concerts every now and again. I just leaned my head back and drank a 16 ounce bottle of water. I could hear the ringing reduce as I drank. When I finished, the ringing was almost gone.

I discovered this as a fluke by following up on suggestions from other EC posts. One said to put your head on your chest, another said the ringing may come from allergies. My allergic reactions are reduced when I drink water so as I chugged a bottle, the sound faded. I guess leaning your head back works as well as leaning it forward.

Off to drink some ACV as a back-up! Thanks for the great remedies!!!

Faucet Test

Posted by Mark (San Francisco) on 09/27/2013

Thanks the running faucet test was brilliant.

My chronic tinninitus flared-up after after recent exposure to noise, combined with a bad cold. I turned on the faucet and found the masking provided instant relief.

Based on that I started looking for water sounds on youtube. Wave sounds did not work but rain sounds did. Lots of people have posted things like 10 hours of Rain on Youtube. I'm running it in stereo in my office now and what a big help.

I'm also trying the vinegar and honey combination. Not sure if this will reduce what I hope is a temporary flareup of tinninitus but the rain/water sounds are big help.

Dietary Changed, Acupuncture

Posted by Stephen (Bronx, Ny) on 12/14/2009
★★★★★

Hey guys I "HAD" severe tinnitus in both my ears. I suffered a hole in my ear drum when I was 12 .Then I played hard rock in a band from 17 to 23. I changed my diet (mainly staying away from alcohol sugar and salt)Stopped playing in my band and started going to accupunture and my tinnitus has gone from a rating of a 9 out of 10 to about a 2. I am so thankful this helped for me. And im sure if I start using a supplement or Appler Cider Vinegar it will completely go away. I hope my testimonial could help someone else with a similar situation.

Pine Bark Extract

Posted by Vanessa (New Mexico ) on 04/11/2025
★★★★★

A friend of mine recently had tinnitus. One doctor said it was from an ear infection, and that the tinnitus would stop when the antibiotics took care of the infection. After the infection was gone she still had tinnitus really bad. She read online that pine bark extract helped some people. She started taking it every other day. After a couple of weeks she noticed that the tinnitus had improved a lot. She's now going to start taking it every day to see if it continues to improve.

Selenium

Posted by Betty (Upstate, NY) on 03/19/2025
★★★★☆

At 67, I felt my tinnitus of 3-4 years was from a lack of some vitamin(s) because it was always a steady ringing. I also felt that a lack of a vitamin(s) will impact more than one problem that one has. In light of this theory, I had just gone through a year that included a total of two cataract surgeries for both eyes. It appeared my tinnitus was not something from eustachian tubes or nerves in my neck from sleeping a certain way that adjusted could affect my tinnitus for the better. I continued my online research and discovered some symptoms I had: weak fingernails, vision that was flat and not bright and age spots all of a sudden in various places could be from a combo of a lack of certain B vitamins plus selenium. I was already taking the B vits but not the selenium. I got some selenium and took it. It seemed to lessen the severity of the ringing of tinnitus and overall made my eyes see things more brighter or clearly that went beyond my new cataract implants. I then researched it some more and found a connection to tinnitus. I also found that the correction ie. selenium to the tinnitus is gradual and not immediate. Just like the problem comes gradually and not all at once. I am hopeful that the addition of selenium will correct several issues I have acquired: tinnitus, my vision, weak nails and the age spots overtime. I will update as things go forward.

Alpha Lipoic Acid

Posted by Denise E (Crescent City, CA) on 02/28/2023

I've started my ALA, just came in the mail yesterday. It's 300mg and I am taking it 2 x day. I will keep track of my results on paper, and transfer it all to a post. I got the Puritans Pride. Thanks to all that posted on this topic. Denise

Multiple Remedies

Posted by Denise (True "Northern" California) on 04/16/2020
★☆☆☆☆

Haven't seen any new posts on EC about Tinnitus, but it's too bad because I am still searching for an answer/fix after 4 going on 5 years of this insidious condition. A silent place, like being home alone, is my worst enemy. I have tried so many things I've seen on EC, but never found anything that touched mine. When I am out and about, especially driving, I don't notice my "T" (I'll call it). At home, I have my app on my phone running (Chrome Doze or Whist tinnitus if mine gets high-pitched). All night I have to have it til I fall asleep, but the Chrome Doze doesn't use hardly any battery so I just let it run. I live in a strange place that has this little app running pretty much, 24/7, especially since I retired, and don't go much, plus, the covid stay-at-home. Well, the best reply imo, that I read here was from 2012 about the Essiac tea. I may try it but haven't a clue which to buy on Amazon. I have a drawer full of supplements that didn't work for me. I do NOT believe mine has much to do with my ears. Other than they hear this sound coming from my brain ;( I get sad when I read these forums about tinnitus and rarely do read them. It's better for me to accept it, that I'll never enjoy the sound of silence again. I hear even people that lose their hearing still have the ringing. I don't even bring it up anymore to my doctors because they have no answers for me. I live a healthy, active lifestyle (exercise, lots of whole foods, lots of water). I find huge relief from allergies doing saltwater irrigation, and ACV every day, twice a day in worst times of the year. I have found wonderful relief from other ailments here so I think there is a lot to Ted's fixes, as well as the many, wonderful, people that share their stories. I wish they'd come back because I am lonely for the company of people that suffer with some of the same things I do. There is not regular gathering of people with health issues. This has the best database, only wish it was more like a regular forum. But at least the info is here to read.

Thanks many thanks, to everyone who is still around, as well as those that have moved on. Denise

Multiple Remedies

Posted by moneydoc (Georgia) on 05/09/2020
★★★★☆

Hi Denise. I understand healthcare problems as here near Atlanta there're lots of providers but few "doctors." Although one dr I saw in January did say the brain tells the ear that it is hearing something when there really is no noise. Hhmn. Could our brains be sending us a message we don't want to hear? Mine is not ringing, but ticking or clicking. Doctor no 2 said he thought I has stapedius muscle spasms. In the medical literature this is called "myoclonus" and is "treated" with botox or surgery. Neither sounds good to me. The MRI that they do is to tell them whether there is a tumor on the acoustic nerve. A contrast medium is injected into your vein and it is gadolinium. Gadolinium is an iron-oxide compound, some of which stays in your brain/body and is not chelated out. There are lawsuits over the side effects so there must be some big effects because lawyers don't take small damage tort lawsuits, only the high dollar cases. Plus the cost is high even with insurance so I have not had an mri. If you can ignore yours with the white noise app, does that tell you anything? Are there unresolved issues? Years earlier (2016-17) when I was taking care of my dying parents, this clicking appeared then. I was very stressed, working at their house 10 hours and doing my job online. When I got rested, it went away, took maybe 2-3 weeks. For the past 20 years, I have worked roughly 10-12 hour days and have developed another autoimmune problem. No sinus issues. Do you have other AI problems? A few days ago I put a few drops of hydrogen peroxide in the ear. Seemed to help. Maybe I will start drinking ACV. Maybe I will just start drinking 😉

Astaxanthin

Posted by William L. (Nashville, TN, USA) on 08/17/2019
★★★★★

For Tinnitus, try Astaxanthin 2 mg 1 softgel per day. This helped me until I learned that I'm allergic to it. Nevertheless, Astaxanthin can not only relax your inner ear, but it's beneficial to your eyes as well.

DMSO, ACV, Castor Oil

Posted by A. Jackson (Singapore) on 07/08/2018
★★★★★

I am using a tablespoon of DMSO, ACV and Castor Oil for tinnitus. Seems to be working, any additional suggestions?

Electric Vibration

Posted by MT (Scottsdale, AZ) on 12/16/2024
★★★★★

Instead of an electric toothbrush, I used a facial scrubber with a silicone shell. It is used to massage and exfoliate the facial tissue. It's very soothing and has a variety of vibrations from pulsating to thumping . Press the wand around the ear or at the base of the skull and neck for about few minutes. It helped reduce the ringing! I will continue to use this technique daily in hopes it goes away completely.

Garlic

Posted by Volsung (Belfast, Uk) on 07/06/2015
★★★★★

I had been suffering rapid ear thumping in my right ear for a couple of months. They would sometimes be triggered off by a yawn or a burp but sometimes they would start seemingly without any trigger at all. The spasms could last about 6 or 7 seconds and occur 3 or 4 times per minute for up to 9 hours. I had also been suffering pulsatile tinnitus in my left ear probably due to a persistent ear infection.

I found that putting a largish piece of cut garlic in my right ear stops the thumping. I haven't had any for a while now. It is important that you cut the garlic to let the active vapours enter the ear. I would keep it in overnight. Also make sure the piece is large enough not to go down far into the ear canal.

EMF Trigger

Posted by Hans (Seattle) on 05/06/2018

in the mean time, put up a faraday cage on both sides of the meter; outside and inside of wall. Look for this on YouTube.

Magnesium and Citric Acid

Posted by Juliet (Austin, Texas) on 04/22/2016

You may want to join the Magnesium Advocacy group on Facebook. The group owner is Morley Robbins and he has uncovered lots of interesting research on magnesium citrate and why it is NOT a good form of magnesium to take.

Essentially magnesium citrate is a magnesium molecule that has been attached to ascorbic acid-- a synthetic form of Vitamin C. This synthetic C has been found to disrupt the function of an enzyme called Ceruloplasmin, which has as an important job the regulation of iron and copper in the body.

In addition, Ascorbic Acid is known to disrupt the healthy gut or intestinal bacteria. It is recommended instead to use a whole food Vitamin C such as found in the Garden of Life Vitamin Code Raw C product or also in Innate Response Whole Food Vitamin C. There are other sources of whole food Vitamin C as well.

As for magnesium-- magnesium oxide is OK-- but, the two most recommended forms are magnesium malate and magnesium glycinate as they are more easily absorbed.

Magnesium is needed for over 3,700 different enzymatic functions in the body and a deficiency can cause a host of symptoms. It is easily lost through stress and is depleted in our soil so, supplementation is usually required.

Hydrogen Peroxide

Posted by Lilie (So Cal) on 01/17/2016

Everyone is different, even the actual sounds are all different - mine sounds like someone next door has music on, so it's good to try the different cures because you never know what will work. For me the Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) in water works well. I take a shot glass and fill it 3/4 w water then top that with ACV, if I know I have been bad and consumed a lot of processed sugar I will take 2 shots. It's almost an immediate relief - within minutes. the funny part is, I tried the ACV drops in my ear and found zero effect - just illustrates how different we all are.

Don't get frustrated if one thing doesn't help, just try a something else. There are so many great tips and suggestions on here and for the most part they are not at all scary. Good luck!!

Lecithin

Posted by Ko (Louisiana) on 03/02/2014
★★★★★

Re Tinnitus, it could be caused from circulation going to inner ear. It can be caused from stress, raising blood pressure, as well as other causes.

I had a stressful job that I believe contributed to "ringing in the ear", I wound up leaving the job but also taking a lecithin capsule either after lunch or after supper-the 1200mg dosage. This worked for me, I'm talking a couple of days! I find that Vit E (400) added can also help, my ear canals feel cleared out instead of perhaps stopped up.

My blood pressure is on the low side right under average, my cholesterol runs at 200 (last time had that checked). If lecithin helps break down cholesterol, this should help circulation.

I showed a coworker some lecithin capsules-I believe they were 800mg/per liquid-cap at the big blue retailer, for right at $8 a bottle. He is very young-18 or so, was mentioning ringing in the ears. We live in a humid area where many people have sinus problems, ear clogs, kids need tubes in their ears, etc.

I showed him the bottle of lecithin, told him to try two at night after supper or one after lunch, one after supper the first few days. Two days later I'd seen him, he was surprised yet told me "hey that stuff works! " I told him you can back off to one tab a day, explained to him if he eats fatty foods, cheeses, meats, etc, that his diet might have something to do with this, get more fruit, greens etc. on his menu. So he was surprised but happy.

I've read that earwax is a byproduct/contains cholesterol, so if it is 'dry, like small dry tiny blocks' instead of 'waxy or oily', it can stop up the ear canal instead of naturally pushing through to the outside of your ear. Makes sense to me.

The Lipoflavanoid tabs that have a red package run $22+, in my opinion the effective ingredient is lecithin.

On another note, I just did my first oil pull earlier, did with sesame oil, added a little oregano to my bottle, shook it up will let it settle. It is allot more palatable than I thought it would be, did this for right at 18 minutes. I did brush before with a little dissolved salt/baking soda in warm water, rinsing after. I repeated the same rinse after the OP, but then brushed with the dissolved salt & baking soda/warm water after, rinsing again. So far, so good!

Interesting website, thank you! ko57

The Snapping Method

Posted by Jinxed (California, Usa) on 12/29/2013
★★★★★

I have just read an article about a help for tinnitus.

Place the palms over the ears, fingers pointing to the back of the head. Point middle fingers at each other. The article said to place index fingers over the middle fingers, and then "snap" them down onto the base of the skull. Repeat snapping 40 - 50 times.

LOL, I can't get the "snap" to happen, so I just pointed my middle fingers together, and then drummed my index fingers on the base of the skull rapidly 40 - 50 times. I opened my mouth and tried to relax the jaw and face.

My tinnitus HAD been due to TMJ and was quite manageable and at a low level, but of late it is a LOUD hissing due to medication.

I was happily surprised to find the tapping/drumming really helped! I repeated the drumming a few times over the last few minutes and the noise is reduced nearly to the bearable levels I had before.

I also think acupuncture is just plain awesome, and the scalenes are never massaged as much as they need in many people with head issues.

Good luck with your "special noise"!