Month: October 2020

Categories
General Information on Meniere's Disease / Syndrome Meniere's Disease Triggers & Causes

Dealing with Tinnitus

By Mike Spencer

Founder of Meniere’s Help. Researcher and author of Managing Meniere’s and The Need for Balance – Dealing with the Causes of Meniere’s

How to deal with tinnitus

According to the CDC, around 50 million people suffer with tinnitus in the US. That is 15% of the population. According to Science daily, one in seven worldwide suffer from tinnitus.

There are many causes of tinnitus, ranging from noise induced, infections, trauma (physical and psychological), drug side effects, diseases, age, TMJ, blood conditions and stress.

How tinnitus sounds and feels is unique to the individual but it varies between ringing, buzzing, clicking, humming, roaring, hissing and indescribable sounds. It can range from slightly annoying to absolutely tortuous.

In Meniere’s disease an increase in tinnitus can precede increases in ear pressure, dizziness and a full blown vertigo attack. Tinnitus can fluctuate greatly and increases can last minutes to days and weeks.

Why?

What causes this increase and what can you do about it? The same triggers that result in pressure build up inside the ear, dizziness and eventually vertigo are the same for tinnitus; increased inflammation and blood pressure.

What causes increased inflammation, blood pressure and tinnitus

  • Stress and anxiety
  • Too much sodium
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Chemicals in processed food
  • Excess sugar consumption
  • Fatigue
  • Lack of sleep
  • Dehydration
  • Extreme anger
  • Hunger
  • MSG
  • Aspartame
  • Lack of essential nutrients
  • Loud noise
  • Excess consumption of caffeine
  • Nicotine
  • Stimulant drugs

Medications known to cause or worsen tinnitus include:

  • Antibiotics, including polymyxin B, erythromycin, vancomycin (Vancocin HCL, Firvanq) and neomycin
  • Cancer medications, including methotrexate (Trexall) and cisplatin
  • Water pills (diuretics), such as bumetanide (Bumex), ethacrynic acid (Edecrin) or furosemide (Lasix)
  • Quinine medications used for malaria or other health conditions
  • Certain antidepressants, which may worsen tinnitus
  • Aspirin taken in uncommonly high doses (usually 12 or more a day)

* Source: Mayo Clinic

Electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure

A very modern cause of tinnitus and indeed Meniere’s disease, may be over exposure to electromagnetic fields. With the rapid saturation of EMFs all around us from wifi, cell phones and cell phone towers has also come an increase in prevalence of tinnitus in young people.

In a 2014 study published in the Journal of Neurology, ‘Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry’, it stated that 29 % of students between the ages of 11 and 17 had already developed chronic tinnitus!

Tinnitus shares pathophysiology with Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity. All things that use electricity generate EMFs, so that includes your computers, televisions, cell phones and household appliances etc.

Your body also uses electrical signals to transmit information. In your brain, neurons communicate with each other via minute electrical charges, and external EMFs can interfere with these signals.

According to the Environmental Health Center -Dallas, “The extent to which EMF affects human health varies depending on the physiological history and genetic predisposition of the person. But exposure to changes in the larger fields of the sun, moon and our planet can affect almost every part of our being from head to heart and from head to toe.

Man made electrical fields likewise affect our body. Their effect depends on the strength of the fields, the distance from the source, and the length of the exposure time. Electrical current passing through the body can injure tissue and damage nerve transmission.

Cell phones produce Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) in the ultra high frequency range or Radio Frequency (RF) range. The radiation emanating from these RF fields can be linked with increased risk of glioma and acoustic neuroma.”

Acoustic neuroma is something that is usually checked for with MRI when diagnosing Meniere’s disease.

As far back as 1994, the American Bar Association Journal reported that EMF cases were being filed at the rate of about one per month.

In 2009 study published on pubmed (Association of Tinnitus and Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity: Hints for a Shared Pathophysiology?), it stated that, “Our data indicate that tinnitus is associated with subjective electromagnetic hypersensitivity. An individual vulnerability probably due to an overactivated cortical distress network seems to be responsible for both electromagnetic hypersensitivity and tinnitus.“

A 2018 study published in Science direct (Tinnitus and cell phones: the role of electromagnetic radiofrequency radiation) concluded with, “There are already reasonable evidences to suggest caution for using mobile phones to prevent auditory damage and the onset or worsening of tinnitus.”

The first way to avoid Tinnitus from EMF is obviously to reduce your time in close proximity to cell phones and do an environmental check for your house and surrounding area.

There are various suggested treatments for “Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity”, including detoxing heavy metals from your body.

How to avoid increases in tinnitus

All of the above can result in poor blood flow, inflammation or lowering of the immune system.

In many cases blood flow may be a major issue with Meniere’s. There is already constant inflammation so anything that adds to that or decreases the ability of your immune system to deal with inflammation will result in increased symptoms, including tinnitus.

So it stands to reason that you should avoid anything that lowers your immune system, affects blood flow or increases the possibility of inflammation.

  • Reduce stress and anxiety through stress management
  • Avoid excess alcohol, caffeine and stimulant drugs
  • Get regular exercise
  • Get enough sleep, with regular sleep patterns
  • Avoid processed foods
  • Avoid too much sugar
  • Avoid too much sodium
  • Eat regular healthy meals
  • Strongly consider dietary supplements to strengthen immune system
  • Drink water regularly

Reducing tinnitus

Vitamin B12

Studies have shown that vitamin B12 deficiency can cause hearing loss and tinnitus.

A 1993 study, ‘Vitamin B12 deficiency in patients with chronic-tinnitus and noise-induced hearing loss’ concluded that, “These observations suggest a relationship between vitamin B12 deficiency and dysfunction of the auditory pathway. Some improvement in tinnitus and associated complaints were observed in 12 patients following vitamin B12 replacement therapy. The authors recommend that routine vitamin B12 serum levels be determined when evaluating patients for chronic tinnitus.”

A 2016 study, Therapeutic role of Vitamin B12 in patients of chronic tinnitus stated,  “This pilot study sheds light on the relationship of deficient B12 levels and tinnitus and its supplementation playing a therapeutic role in tinnitus.” 

Vitamin B12 is an ingredient of Lipoflavonoid Plus.

For a decade and a half we have seen success in reducing Meniere’s symptoms using a specific dietary supplementation regimen. One of the most stubborn symptoms has always been tinnitus. Often, when Lipoflavonoid Plus has been added to this regimen, where tinnitus was still an issue, it seems to be successful.

Click here to read more about Lipoflavonoid Plus

Glutamate and GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

Glutamate is a powerful excitatory neurotransmitter that is released by nerve cells in the brain. It is responsible for sending signals between nerve cells. It is the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the vertebrate nervous system.

When there is too much glutamate it can become an excitotoxin and leads to seizures and the death of brain cells. This can lead to anxiety, stress, depression, and many neurodegenerative conditions, one of which is tinnitus.

Hypoglycemia can cause excessive glutamate concentrations around neurons, as blood sugars are the primary glutamate removal method. Hypoglycemia has also been linked to Meniere’s disease.

Read more about the links between hypoglycemia and Meniere’s disease here: Hypoglycemia and Meniere’s disease

Studies show that stress can activate glutamate and alter the balance of glutamate and GABA. Stress is a known trigger for Meniere’s disease and most sufferers know that stress will increase tinnitus, ear pressure and the likelihood of a vertigo attack.

Nutrients that can help balance glutamate include the amino acids taurine, GABA, and l-theanine; the anti-oxidants NAC and green tea; vitamins B6 and D; the minerals magnesium and zinc and omega-3 fatty acids.

GABA deficiency can cause increased glutamate.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) acts as the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system (CNS). Glutamate and GABA work in a cycle. Increasing GABA may help inhibit too much glutamate production and has been shown in studies to reduce tinnitus.

Importantly, GABA plays a role in mediating sound receptors in your brain.

Magnesium

Magnesium has been shown to be a very integral part of successful supplement regimens for Meniere’s and has been used in Mayo clinic studies for tinnitus.

According to clinicaltrial.gov, “Recent studies of both noise-induced hearing loss and idiopathic sensorineural hearing loss have suggested that Mg supplementation may lessen the severity of tinnitus in patients. Mg improved hearing recovery and lessened tinnitus in patients with idiopathic sudden hearing loss.”

In 2011 The International Tinnitus Journal published a study stating that, “patients with moderate to severe tinnitus achieved significant improvement when taking a daily dose of 532 milligrams of magnesium for three months.”

You can a read a more in depth article on Magnesium and Meniere’s disease by clicking the link below.

Magnesium links to Meniere’s disease

PYCNOGENOL

Studies have shown that supplementing with pycnogenol has helped reduce tinnitus in Meniere’s disease. A 2014 Japanese study conclude that, “Symptoms of Meniere’s disease, flow at cochlear level and tinnitus improved in Pycnogenol subjects in comparison with best management.”

Read more on pycnogenol here: PYCNOGENOL for Meniere’s Disease

Gingko Biloba

The therapeutic values of gingko have been known for thousands of years. It is particularly well known for helping blood flow to the peripheral blood vessels of the body. Researchers believe that ginkgo improves cognitive function because it promotes good blood circulation in the brain and protects the brain from neuronal damage.

Supplementing with ginkgo has long been part of successful supplement regimens for Meniere’s disease.

Studies suggest it is useful for tinnitus. One such study in 2011, ‘Ginkgo biloba extract in the treatment of tinnitus a systematic review’ stated, “Of note, all trials using this extract consistently demonstrate its superiority over placebo.”

Masking Tinnitus

Resting and trying to sleep can be difficult with constant tinnitus. Masking the sound with background music, the sound of nature or other specific frequency sound therapy can help you relax and block out the noise in your ear.

The tinnitus masking music therapy below, at the time of writing, has the best reviews on youtube.

Massage to ease tinnitus and other Meniere’s symptoms

I personally found that often the correct massage helped ease pressure, dizziness and tinnitus. In my case, a Thai massage therapist in Japan would use a green balm. She would massage up from the neck, behind the affected ear over the top of the ear and down to the jaw, in long slow deep strokes.

It was an easy massage to replicate and I could do this myself and often ease pressure, and therefore the tinnitus quite quickly.**

Medical massage for tinnitus is available. Medical massage, targeting specific muscles of the neck, head, upper back, and jaw can release tension and reduce the intensity of tinnitus symptoms.

In the video below, this man uses a slightly different technique, but judging from the comments on youtube it may help a great deal.

**Note: I no longer suffer from the symptoms of Meniere’s disease or tinnitus. You can read my story below:

Mike’s Meniere’s Story

Acupuncture for tinnitus

Acupuncture has been shown to be an effective treatment for both Meniere’s in general and in reducing tinnitus. Studies have shown this to be the case and I can personally vouch for this. It is not a cure and will mean regular visits, but I found it to be very beneficial in temporarily easing pressure, reducing tinnitus and stopping dizziness.

One 2018 study cited in the Caspian Journal of Internal Medicine concluded that, “acupuncture was more effective in reducing the loudness and severity of tinnitus based on VAS and TSI and can be used as a good treatment option for chronic non-pulsatile tinnitus.”

It should be noted that with both massage and acupuncture, it can very much depend on the skill and understanding of the individual therapist. As in all professions, some are great at what they do while others, not so good.

If you found this article useful Click here to support Meniere’s Help paypal.me/menieres

Related articles:

PYCNOGENOL for Meniere’s Disease
Magnesium Links to Meniere’s Disease
Acupuncture for Meniere’s Disease

Help other sufferers.

What are your experiences with Meniere’s and relief from tinnitus? Let us know in the comments box below or email Mike at meniereshelp@gmail.com

Further reading: Improvement in symptoms and cochlear flow with pycnogenol in patients with Meniere’s disease and tinnitus

Categories
Meniere's Disease Triggers & Causes General Information on Meniere's Disease / Syndrome Uncategorized

Toxic Mold and Meniere’s

The hidden dangers of toxic mold and Meniere’s Disease

Mold and mycotoxins may be among the least spoken about serious threats to our health. The possible connections between mold and Meniere’s is not among the most commonly spoken about subjects when considering triggers and causes either.

Yet the possible connections have been known for many years. It is important to understand there can be many possible root causes and what is relevant to one Meniere’s sufferer may have little to no relevance in another.

According to Dr Mercola, “From a toxicity point of view, some mycotoxins (toxic substances produced by mold) are actually far more toxic than heavy metals, in terms of concentration. Mycotoxins also tend to affect more biological systems in your body than do pesticides or heavy metals, partly because fungi have the ability to dodge your immune system by rapidly mutating, while at the same time producing chemicals that suppress your immune system.”

He also says, “If your immune system is stressed in any way, or if you are extremely sensitive and have allergy-like reactions to a variety of agents then you may be even MORE sensitive to mold than the average person and have chronic symptoms directly related to mold in your environment. But even if you are generally healthy, mold can still pose a significant risk if you are caught off-guard.”

You need a healthy immune system to avoid Meniere’s symptoms, that’s a fact. We have seen for over a decade and a half that supporting your immune system with high quality supplements and a good diet has helped many people reduce their symptoms significantly regardless of their root cause.

However if your Meniere’s symptoms are a result of toxic molds, it may take specific nutrients in high enough levels to detox it from your body.

Molds have been associated with health problems that in themselves have been linked to Meniere’s such as sinus problems and autoimmune disease. Diagnostic tests for mold toxicity are very specific and one of those is a hearing test.

Toxic mold exposure has also been linked to neurological damage causing memory loss, insomnia, anxiety, depression, trouble concentrating, confusion. headaches, fatigue, nasal irritation and nausea.

Mold has also been linked to, dizziness, vertigo, tinnitus, ear infections, hearing loss, autoimmune inner ear disease and Meniere’s disease itself.

Video: Meniere’s disease – Airborne allergies and Mold

In a study published in the journal Nature, ‘Proinflammatory cytokines and response to molds in mononuclear cells of patients with Meniere disease’ it was concluded that “Aspergillus and Penicillium trigger the release of TNF-? in MD patients and this could initiate or exacerbate the inflammatory response in the inner ear.”

Aspergillus and Penicillium are types of mold. There are hundreds of types of aspergillus molds and mildews that can be inhaled.

Penicillium is a fungus that grows on spoiled foods and can be ingested.

Video: Meniere’s, Tinnitus, Ringing of the Ears driven by Mold?

Solutions to toxic mold and Meniere’s

I personally suffered for 7 years with Meniere’s symptoms [ I bo longer suffer from the symptoms of Meniere’s disease ]. During the absolute worst period of suffering I searched for mold in my house. It was the rainy season in Japan where I lived and at that time of year the moisture is incredible.

I found a huge patch of mold behind a set of drawers very near where my head would be while I slept. I immediately set about cleaning the mold and as a result very quickly brought on a violent vertigo attack.

It would be advisable to get a professional in to clear the mold because it may be all over your home without you knowing. If a professional is out of the question, then at least get someone else to clean it for you.

According to American mold expert Dr. Jack Thrasher, as many as 40 percent of American schools and 25 percent of homes have mold infestations, unbeknownst to the people occupying those buildings.

He says, “It follows that adverse health effects of mold may be reaching pandemic levels.”

Regarding humidity and mold Dr. Thrasher says,  anything above 60 percent is going to lead to growth of mold and bacteria… People have to be very careful about this situation. That’s why I call it a pandemic“

If your home is prone to mold it would be advisable to (after clearing the mold) use an air purifier during the damp periods and make sure your house is well aired naturally in dryer periods.

Glutathione 

Glutathione is a powerful antioxidant produced in cells. Research suggests that mycotoxins in mold can decrease the formation of glutathione due to decreased gene expression of the enzymes needed to form glutathione.

Mycotoxin-related compromise of glutathione production can result in an excess of oxidative stress that leads to tissue damage and systemic illness.

Glutathione  is needed to detox mold from your body. Your liver is your body’s main detox organ. This is where glutathione plays a major role in detoxifying your mold mycotoxins.

When there is not enough glutathione to eliminate the toxins they start to stack up in the liver and cause mitochondrial damage – your cells’ energy powerhouse – affecting glutathione production.

Glutathione has been shown to improve protein, enzyme, and bilirubin levels in the blood of individuals with alcoholic and nonalcoholic chronic fatty liver disease. A study reported that glutathione was most effective when given to people with fatty liver disease intravenously, in high doses.

Glutathione can be found in foods such as: asparagus, avocado, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, spinach, broccoli, garlic, chives, tomatoes, cucumber, almonds, and walnuts.

However, dietary glutathione is poorly absorbed by the human body. Additionally, cooking and storage conditions can decrease the amount found in food. So if you have been exposed to mold mycotoxins it is worth supplementing pro-glutathione nutrients.

Milk thistle, N-acetyl cysteine and superoxide dismutase supplements can activate glutathione production naturally.

If you found this article useful Click here to support Meniere’s Help paypal.me/menieres

Related articles:

Stopping Meniere’s Symptoms During Allergy Season
Overcoming Meniere’s Disease
Meniere’s Disease – Allergies and Mold

By Mike Spencer

Founder of Meniere’s Help. Researcher and author of Managing Meniere’s Disease and The Need for Balance – Dealing with the Causes of Meniere’s

Do you have experience with toxic mold and the symptoms of Meniere’s ?

Help other sufferers. Tell us all about it in the comments box below or email Mike at meniereshelp@gmail.com

References/Further reading: Deficient Glutathione in the Pathophysiology of Mycotoxin-Related Illness

Categories
Meniere's Disease and Nutrition General Information on Meniere's Disease / Syndrome

Vitamin D and Meniere’s Disease

By Mike Spencer

Founder of Meniere’s Help

Researcher and writer of Managing Meniere’s Disease and The Need for Balance

Vitamin D and Meniere’s Disease – What you should know

While all essential vitamins and minerals are important for a healthy functioning, balanced body, some vitamins are better known for their value to the immune system and some vitamins are known to help suppress the symptoms of Meniere’s disease.

Vitamin C, B12 and Magnesium are relatively well known for their benefits to ear function and Meniere’s but what about Vitamin D and Meniere’s disease?

According to studies cited on Mercola.com there is a robust and rapidly growing body of research clearly showing that vitamin D is absolutely critical for good health and disease prevention, in part due to the fact that it influences about 10 percent of all your genes.

Just one example of an important gene that vitamin D upregulates is your ability to fight infections and chronic inflammation. The whole concept behind using quality dietary supplements for Meniere’s disease is to support the immune system enough for it to deal with the inflammation causing Meniere’s symptoms.

So vitamin D would appear to be an important part of that.

It also produces over 200 anti-microbial peptides, the most important of which is cathelicidin, a naturally occurring broad-spectrum antibiotic.

Vitamin D is more than just one vitamin. It’s actually a family of nutrients that share similarities in chemical structure.

Sources of Vitamin D

In your diet, the most commonly found members are vitamin D2 and D3. The difference between D2 and D3 is, Vitamin D3 is found in food from animals while Vitamin D2 comes from plant derived foods. The best sources of Vitamin D3 is exposure to sunlight.

So if you are a vegan or living in areas that have little sunlight in winter you run a risk of vitamin D3 deficiency.

Sources of Vitamin D3:

Sources of Vitamin D2

  • Mushrooms (grown in UV light)
  • Fortified foods
  • Dietary supplements

Focus on Vitamin D has only really taken off in the last 20 years. In this time, newer and more accessible technology has shown that Vitamin D deficiency is widespread.

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 32% of children and adults throughout the US were vitamin D deficient
  • The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey found that 50% of children aged one to five years old, and 70% of children between the ages of 6 and 11, are deficient or insufficient in vitamin D
  • Researcher Dr. Holick estimates that 50% of the general population is at risk of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency
  • In 2015 the WHO reported that Vitamin D deficiency is thought to be a widespread public health problem globally

A strong, healthy immune system means less inflammation and less inflammation means less chance of developing the symptoms of Meniere’s disease, or any other disease.

It is widely thought that vitamin D plays an important role in the modulation of the inflammation system by regulating the production of inflammatory cytokines and immune cells, which are crucial for the pathogenesis of many immune-related diseases.

Vitamin D studies

In a study published in The Journal of Immunology in 2012 ‘How vitamin D inhibits inflammation‘ it wrote:

“Vitamin D has long been known to contribute to bone health by promoting the absorption of calcium. In recent years, much attention has been paid to its possible immune and inflammatory benefits. Low vitamin D levels have been associated with several diseases including asthma, cancer, diabetes, and arthritis.

This study goes beyond previous associations of vitamin D with various health outcomes. It outlines a clear chain of cellular events, from the binding of DNA, through a specific signaling pathway, to the reduction of proteins known to trigger inflammation. Patients with chronic inflammatory diseases, such as asthma, arthritis and prostate cancer, who are vitamin D deficient, may benefit from vitamin D supplementation to get their serum vitamin D levels above 30 nanograms/milliliter”

Vitamin D also help control immune responses though cellular communication. Receptors for vitamin D are found on most types of immune cells. When vitamin D binds to cellular receptors, it sends messages to help support many different natural responses that can help keep you healthy. Sometimes, those responses can include turning on production of even more active vitamin D to increase levels right where and when it’s needed.

Vitamin D is fat-soluble—meaning that the fat in your body is how you collect and store it. So, if you’re overweight, it may mean you need more of it.

According to a 2011 study in the Journal of Investigative Medicine: “It is now clear that vitamin D has important roles in addition to its classic effects on calcium and bone homeostasis. As the vitamin D receptor is expressed on immune cells (B cells, T cells and antigen presenting cells) and these immunologic cells are all are capable of synthesizing the active vitamin D metabolite, vitamin D has the capability of acting in an autocrine manner in a local immunologic milieu.

Vitamin D can modulate the innate and adaptive immune responses. Deficiency in vitamin D is associated with increased autoimmunity as well as an increased susceptibility to infection. As immune cells in autoimmune diseases are responsive to the ameliorative effects of vitamin D, the beneficial effects of supplementing vitamin D deficient individuals with autoimmune disease may extend beyond the effects on bone and calcium homeostasis.“

Can Vitamin D help reduce the symptoms of Meniere’s Disease

A 2018 paper published on NIH, ‘Vitamin D supplementation may improve symptoms in Meniere’s disease’ states: “In the last 4 years the authors observed a trend that correcting vitamin D deficiency in newly diagnosed cases of Meniere’s disease decreased the necessity of the ablative therapy with intratympanic gentamicin. According to their hypothesis, vitamin D supplementation may indeed have a beneficial effect in Meniere’s disease if the symptoms are caused by a local postviral autoimmune reaction. Vitamin D has a strong immunomodulatory role, one of which is the regulation of the expression of pro-inflammatory mediators”

According to study published in August 2020 in ‘Neurology’ “Taking vitamin D and calcium twice a day may reduce your chances of getting vertigo”

A 2016 case study in the Caspian Journal of internal Medicine stated that, “This study indicates that the normalization of serum vitamin D significantly reduces BPPV recurrences.”

In 1983 The Journal of Laryngology and Otology published a study: ‘Vitamin D deficiency–a new cause of cochlear deafness’. It stated, “Ten patients are reported with bilateral cochlear deafness which was associated with vitamin D deficiency. The features of these cases are discussed following an overview of the clinical aspects and diagnosis of vitamin D deficiency.

The most likely pathogenesis is localized demineralization of the cochlea resulting in secondary morphological changes. Replacement therapy resulted in unilateral hearing improvement in two of the four patients in whom the response to treatment could be assessed.

This suggests a previously unrecognized causal correlation between vitamin D deficiency and cochlear deafness. Impaired vitamin D activity may be important in the aetiology of otosclerosis, presbyacusis and the deafness associated with chronic renal failure. Vitamin D deficiency should be considered in the differential diagnosis of unexplained bilateral cochlear deafness. It is important, as this ‘new’ metabolic type of sensorineural deafness may be reversible, and may also lead to the diagnosis of early osteomalacia before more serious generalized skeletal symptoms can occur.”

It would appear that Vitamin D is an important nutrient related to ear health, vertigo, deafness and tinnitus.

It is important to note that if you supplement vitamin D, you also need to take vitamin K2. The biological role of vitamin K2 is to help move calcium into the correct areas in your body. It also helps remove calcium from areas where it shouldn’t be, such as in your arteries and soft tissues.

Vitamin K2 deficiency is actually what produces the consequences similar to vitamin D toxicity, which includes inappropriate calcification that can lead to hardening of your arteries. The reason for this is because when you take vitamin D, your body creates more vitamin K2-dependent proteins that move calcium around in your body.

Without vitamin K2, those proteins remain inactivated, so the benefits of those proteins remain unrealized. So remember, if you take supplemental vitamin D, you’re creating an increased demand for K2.

This may have added significance for Vitamin D and Meniere’s disease as it has been suggested that excess vitamin D without K can cause tinnitus.

Would you consider yourself overweight? Studies suggest that obesity can cause issues with vitamin D deficiency regardless of intake from diet or exposure to sunlight.

Dr. Paulette Chandler, assistant professor of medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, “Our study highlights that obesity may confer resistance to vitamin D effects.

Chandler is a co-author of the study, ‘Vitamin D reduces risk for metastatic cancer, death by 17%‘ published on the JAMA network in November 2020.

The fact that the more obese you are the less effective vitamin D is utilized in your body has been pointed out in other previous studies. The 2017 study ‘Vitamin D in Obesity‘ pointed out:

“Serum vitamin D is lower in obese people; it is important to understand the mechanism of this effect and whether it indicates clinically significant deficiency … Vitamin D is fat soluble, and distributed into fat, muscle, liver, and serum.

All of these compartments are increased in volume in obesity, so the lower vitamin D likely reflects a volumetric dilution effect and whole body stores of vitamin D may be adequate … Obese people need higher loading doses of vitamin D to achieve the same serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D as normal weight.“

The 2013 study ‘Causal Relationship between Obesity and Vitamin D Status‘ found that for every 10% increase in body-mass index, there’s a 4.2% reduction in blood levels of vitamin D. According to the authors of that particular study, obesity may in fact be a causal factor in the development of vitamin D deficiency.

Considering all of the above information, if you are overweight, have a deficiency in vitamin D and Meniere’s disease, this factor could be even more significant for you to consider.

If you found this article useful Click here to support Meniere’s Help paypal.me/menieres

Further reading:

Vitamin C and Meniere’s Disease
Magnesium Links to Meniere’s Disease

Help other sufferers. What are your experiences with Vitamin D and Meniere’s disease? Tell us all about it in the comments box below or email Mike at meniereshelp@gmail.com

References/Further reading: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29857909/

Exit mobile version