There have been some instances where people have claimed that Vitamin B12 cured their Tinnitus. But, will the same happen to you? Let’s explore the Vitamin B12 Tinnitus condition. We will also look at medical evidence available to support or argue against a B12 Tinnitus cure.
How is Vitamin B12 Connected to Tinnitus?
Vitamin B12 has a variety of functions in the body. It primarily supports the production of red blood cells and it also helps us release energy from the foods we eat. You can learn more about vitamin B12 here. But, it’s the red blood cell production assistance that connects Vitamin B12 to Tinnitus.
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Red blood cells carry oxygen to the nervous system. This oxygen is critical as it will ensure the maintenance of a healthy myelin sheath which basically acts as a protective layer around nerve fibers. Studies have indicated that a lack of Vitamin B12 can specifically cause demyelination in your brain’s auditory cortex, affecting the cochlear nerve, causing symptoms such as Tinnitus or even hearing loss. Demyelination, over time, causes axonal degeneration where nerves begin to misfire and then eventually die.
A study of 100 patients with Tinnitus showed that an overwhelming 63% of them were Vitamin B12 deficient, with levels below 180 pg/ml. A level between 200 and 900 pg/ml is considered normal for adults. For the elderly, levels of 300 to 350 pg/ml are considered normal.
Vitamin B12 Deficiency, Pernicious Anemia and Tinnitus
While most people have Vitamin B12 deficiency because they don’t consume enough Vitamin B12 rich foods, some can be deficient because of an auto immune condition called Pernicious Anemia.
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It is a condition where the stomach lining is compromised by your body’s own immune system. This then disallows the absorption of Vitamin B12 from food, even if you are consuming enough protein rich foods. In such a case, lifelong supplementation of Vitamin B12 is the only relief measure available, for now. Supplementation for Pernicious Anemia is usually administered through Vitamin B12 injections or pills that can be taken orally.
Can Vitamin B12 Cure Tinnitus?
Research conducted to explore Vitamin B12 as a treatment or cure for Tinnitus have unfortunately been limited to one single study, conducted in India.
A small group of people suffering from Tinnitus and who were also Vitamin B12 deficient were given 2500 mcg (1ml) of Vitamin B12 a week, for 6 weeks. After supplementation, all participants reported improvements to their Tinnitus Severity Index (TSI) scores.
TSI scores measure the intensity of Tinnitus by measuring severity of the ringing sounds through auditory hearing tests. This auditory evaluation is also aided by qualitive measurements, where patients rate their Tinnitus severity by answering questionnaires.
Though participants in this study reported improvements after Vitamin B12 supplementation, the relief was not significant.
But, another even smaller study indicated that Vitamin B12 can particularly help Tinnitus patients whose Tinnitus sounds matched the 250 Hz frequency. That study concluded that Vitamin B12 made absolutely no difference to Tinnitus experienced at other frequencies. If Vitamin B12 is indeed the cause for your Tinnitus, you will experience these signs that Tinnitus is going away, as your Vitamin B12 levels normalize in your body.
There is also some anecdotal references that suggest that Vitamin B12 supplementation can only help provide relief from Tinnitus if the patient was extremely Vitamin B12 deficient. If your Tinnitus can be cured or helped by Vitamin B12 supplementation, you will typically experience these signs that your Tinnitus is going away, after you have begun your Vitamin B12 supplementation.
Who is at Risk of Being Vitamin B12 Deficient?
Vitamin B12 cannot be produced in the body. It is only obtained from food. Protein rich foods such as meat, fish, eggs and dairy can provide the body with the Vitamin B12 it needs.
The following demographic is therefore at risk of being Vitamin B12 deficient;
- Vegans or vegetarians or people who consume insufficient amounts of daily protein
- 60+ age group
How Can One Take Vitamin B12 Supplementation?
Your blood work will help your doctor determine if you need Vitamin B12 supplementation. If you are borderline deficient, your doctor might just ask you to consume more protein in your diet, so you can receive sufficient Vitamin B12 without supplementation.
However, if you are very deficient or have Pernicious Anemia, you will either be prescribed Hydroxocobalamin or Cyanocobalamin. It is recommended that you try to get supplemented by Hydroxocobalamin, as this allows the introduced Vitamin B12 to stay in the body for longer than the other injection type.
Typically, Vitamin B12 injections are given every alternate day, for 2-4 weeks, depending on how your levels increase. After this period, you will be advised to up your protein intake. Again, people suffering from Pernicious Anemia will not be able to go off supplementation as their body can’t process vitamin B12 from the foods they consume. Benfotiamine for Tinnitus is also a very popular way to provide Vitamin B variant supplements to the body.
Should you take Vitamin B12 for Tinnitus?
As discussed before, there is medical evidence that suggests that Vitamin B12 supplementation can slightly lessen the severity of Tinnitus in patients who are Vitamin B12 sufficient. However, such relief or improvement was not significant enough for Vitamin B12 to be called a treatment or cure. That being said, low Vitamin B12 levels can lead to a host of other critical health problems and it would be prudent to seek supplementation, by talking to your doctor.
If anything, Vitamin B12 can at least help prevent your Tinnitus from getting worse in the long run.
