Sugar is a big culprit in triggering a lot of tinnitus cases. Check out this quick guide on how much sugar you actually need (the results will shock you!) and a few of the worst offending foods.
Don’t worry – we give you a few easy, healthy alternatives you can try out today to help cut down your sugar intake.
Your inner ear, like your brain, cannot store energy.
The only way it can work and get energy is as your blood carries oxygen, nutrients and glucose (sugar) to it.
Researchers are studying the many ways that restrictions to blood flow affect our hearing and how it may be one of the leading causes of tinnitus.
Blood flow is affected by many factors, such as smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and high glucose levels caused by excess sugar.
Growing up, our parents taught us how to walk, talk and function in society.
One thing that many of us didn’t learn was the best way to eat to stay healthy and strong.
Do you even know what is the “right amount” of sugar that you are supposed to be consuming daily?
With sugar found in almost everything these days, knowing how much is actually enough (and where you can easily cut down some of your sugar intake) is essential.
Especially if your tinnitus is correlated to diabetes, hyperglycemia or other insulin-related disorders.
How Much Sugar Do You Need?
First off, as much as it is tasty and addictive, you could go your whole life not eating any added white sugar.
There are no essential nutrients in sugar. However, we do need carbohydrates to survive and sugar is a type of carbohydrate.
Harvard recommends that the average adult man consumes no more than 150 calories of sugar per day.
To put that in perspective, just one can of soda has 150 calories of sugar.
As we need carbohydrates to live, one thing to look carefully at is the source of your carbohydrates.
Your body will react differently depending which carb you ingest.
Simple carbohydrates, like the ones in cereals, table sugar, nuts, and fruits are easily used by your body.
The downside is that they cause your blood sugar levels to spike quickly.
On the other hand, complex carbohydrates like starchy vegetables and beans contain other nutrients that your body requires.
This combo equals a more stable and gentle increase in your blood sugar.
With all the easily accessible food we have in America, it’s easy to reach your daily required carbohydrate intake.
But it’s worth analyzing the sources of your dietary sugars.
Especially as a tinnitus sufferer, if you are taking in too many simple carbohydrates, you should work on replacing them with some complex alternatives.
What Are Some of the Most Common Offenders?
What foods should you be on the lookout for?
What can you do to replace the cravings for them?
Here’s a quick list of some of the most common sugar-laden foods with some ideas on what you can do to replace them with some healthier options that will lead to less ringing in your ears.
1. Soda
There is no contest here. Soda is one of the biggest dangers to your daily sugar limit.
Not only is it loaded with sugar but when you combine that with all the other ingredients they put in there, it’s extremely addictive and designed specifically to have you drink way more than you might have planned on.
Replacement:
To conquer the soda addiction, try using sparkling or carbonated water.
These days sparkling water comes in many different flavors.
Once your taste buds get used to the taste without the sugar, you’ll wonder how you ever drank such sweet drinks in the first place.
And your eardrums will thank you.
2. Juice
A sneaky way sugar infiltrates our diets are seemingly harmless juices – which are usually made from fruit. Talk about confusing!
The problem with juices is that they concentrate the sugar from the fruit.
They do this by taking out the natural water and fiber that you would be getting if you had eaten the fruit fresh.
Think about it: If you had to make apple or peach or orange juice at home, how many fresh fruits would you need to make just one glass?
And how much of the healthy and nutritious fruit pulp would you be dumping out just so you could get the “juice”?
Replacement:
First, try keeping your morning glass of orange juice to a smaller portion or for weekends only.
Next, you can try having your breakfast with a few fresh berries or half of an orange sliced up next to your meal.
You’ll get more nutrients, keep your blood sugar more even and the combo of that will lead to more energy throughout your day.
3. Condiments
Who doesn’t love ketchup with their fries, barbeque sauce on chicken and ribs, and dressing on a healthy salad?
The problem with all those is the amount of sugar in the bottles we buy off the shelves.
Replacement:
Some things just can’t replace ketchup and barbeque sauce, but if you try to keep a closer eye on how much you are dipping or slathering on your food, it could make a big difference.
For salads, adding a bit of salt and pepper, some vinegar and a splash of oil might be all you need.
If you’re still craving your salad dressing or barbeque sauce, try keeping them on the side and then adding in just a bit at a time.
4. Snacks
Packaged snacks such as chips, trail mixes, cereals or even smoothies are all jam-packed with sugar.
Sugar is added to make bland food taste better – and for its addictive effect.
If you like how it tastes and you crave it, you’ll buy it more.
Which is what any manufacturer wants.
Replacement:
A better alternative would be to pack and prepare snacks yourself.
This way, you’ll know exactly what’s in it.
It can be hard to get into the routine of packing up snacks yourself.
Try starting to take one or two days a week, say Sunday and Wednesday night, to cut up fresh vegetables and fruits, put nuts in little containers, and slice up cheese to portion it out to grab easily in the morning or during the day.
Small steps like this will make healthy choices easier until it becomes second nature.
Conclusion
Understanding your diet, and what you are eating is a struggle in a world where most of us are too busy to even pack a lunch.
But if you can put a little bit more time and effort in selecting your food, you will drastically reduce the amount of sugar and unhealthy additives you are eating without even knowing it.
While being healthy is a great side-benefit, remember that cutting down sugar could be a great way to get the ringing in your ears under control.
If you are still looking for a tinnitus remedy, you can try cutting back on salt, caffeine and learn which medications might be triggering your tinnitus.
There are many tinnitus treatments available and some exciting new tinnitus cures on the horizon!
