Is There a Link Between MSG and Tinnitus?

First of all, what is MSG? 

According to Mayo Clinic, "monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a flavor enhancer often added to restaurant foods, canned vegetables, soups, deli meats and other foods."

Many people say consuming MSG causes or worsens tinnitus. Here are the results from a quick search:

• European manufacturer of medical devices, Kiversal, says "Flavour enhancers: substances such as monosodium glutamate (MSG) are excitatory neurotransmitters that can trigger tinnitus.

• Anderson Audiology writes: "Consuming MSG basically increases levels of electrical activity in the brain, including where loud tinnitus noises are perceived."

• Dietary supplements provider, Arches, has a good explanation of how MSG causes tinnitus: 
  "MSG breaks down into glutamate in the body. Glutamate...is an excitatory neuro-transmitter; it triggers the firing of neurons. When there is too much glutamate in the synapse between neurons, it activates the neurons into a continual firing mode until they exhaust their energy reserves and die.
  "Glutamate is the primary villain in cochlear-synaptic tinnitus. This type of tinnitus develops when hair cells in the cochlea are damaged. This is caused primarily by exposure to loud noise or ototoxic drugs which damage the hair cells. When the hair cells are damaged, they release large amounts of glutamate which become toxic to the neuroreceptors in the auditory pathway. These receptors die off from the excess glutamate and tinnitus is the result."

• The CEO of The Center for Hearing Loss Help, Neil Bauman, writes that both the artificial sweetener Aspartame and the flavor-enhancer monosodium glutamate (MSG) are neurotoxins that cause or exacerbate tinnitus. By avoiding aspartame and "foods that contain any forms of glutamate," like MSG, you can avoid getting tinnitus from what you eat.

• The family-owned hearing aid center Beltone in Texas puts it this way: "Flavor enhancers like monosodium glutamate, or MSG, break down to glutamate in our bodies. Glutamate is the number one cause of tinnitus in the food category. Similar to aspartame, it is also an excitatory neurotransmitter. If neuro-receptors in the auditory pathways are flooded with glutamates, the neurons become excited and fire continuously to the point of depleting and dying eventually."

The problem is that MSG is nearly impossible to avoid, according to Hungry for Change. They say that's because:

1. There are over 40 different ingredients that manufacturers use, that all have MSG.

2. It is not just a flavor enhancing additive – it is a natural by-product of processing proteins. These MSG by-products are found in many of your favorite organic health foods.

Eating whole, unprocessed foods can help you avoid MSG and hopefully reduce your tinnitus (or keep it from starting in the first place).

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