What Causes Ringing in the Ear: An Overview
If you ask what causes ringing in the ear, you cannot have a single answer as various conditions are associated with the unwanted sound. What needs to be understood is that tinnitus it is a symptom certain conditions, and it is important that you get to know some of them. It is not enough that you know you have tinitus and just get whichever remedy that you would like to make use of. The condition that you may be suffering from must be determined with a fair degree of certainty as this will help you narrow down your options in finding the appropriate remedy.
The main causes of ringing ears are noise-induced cochlear damage, stress, sinus problems or allergies, and Meniere’s Disease.
Noise-induced cochlear damage is the root cause of the majority of the cases of tinitus. The primary contributor for this is listening to MP3 players at a very high volume. You should know that listening to your MP3 player set to more than 60% of its maximum volume for an hour or more can damage your cochlea. The cochlea is composed of tiny hairs that send electrical impulses to the auditory nerve, which are then interpreted by the brain as sound. But, when these tiny hairs get bent or broken due to sudden or repeated exposure to loud noise, they randomly send electrical impulses even though no sound waves are detected. This sound usually comes as a ringing noise, which we of course know as tinnitus.
Other reasons for cochlear damage include ear candling, sports injuries, and dental, head, and ear or nasal passage surgeries.
Stress can also be a reason why a person experiences ringing in the ears. While we need stress to be on our toes and become more productive, too much stress affects the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus is a primitive part of the brain responsible for the production of essential chemicals that the body uses to function normally. And, when these are not produced because of prolonged exposure of the hypothalamus to stress, unhealthy conditions take place, including tinnitus.
Furthermore, sinus problems and allergies cause ringing in the ears because of the kind medications that their sufferers take to treat them. Antibiotics and antihistamines can thicken the mucous in the middle ear, leading to a pressure build up. As a result, ringing in the ears and middle ear infections arise. On the other hand, Meniere’s Disease is an inner ear disorder that have vertigo, hearing fluctuations, a sense of fullness in the ears, and tinnitus as symptoms.
What causes ringing in the ear also include age-associated hearing loss, earwax impaction, head trauma, hyperthyroidism, and high blood pressure.
