Ears - Eye, Ear, Nose, and Throat Disorders

Ears

The ear consists of three important components: the outer ear including the ear canal leading to the tympanic membrane (eardrum); the middle ear consisting of three bones connected to the throat by the eustachian tube; and the inner ear where mechanical vibrations are converted to nerve impulses.

According to the American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA), more than 2.1 million Americans develop hearing impairment annually in the United States. Ear disorders are extremely difficult for people to diagnose themselves and usually require medical attention by an ear specialist–either an otologist or an otolaryngologist. According to ASHA, the three most common types of hearing impairment in the U.S are those that involve conductive hearing loss, those that involve ear nerve loss, and those that involve both.

Conductive hearing loss is a condition in which sound waves are blocked as they travel through the auditory canal of the middle ear and cannot reach the inner ear. Common causes include wax blocking the ear canal, infection, or a punctured eardrum. Most problems of this nature can be easily treated.

Otosclerosis, the second most common hearing disorder, is a condition in which the bones of the middle ear soften, do not vibrate well, and eventually calcify. Once this problem occurs, it can only be corrected by surgery.

“Nerve deafness” involves either temporary or permanent damage to the hair cells or nerve fibers of the inner ear. Causes of nerve deafness include high fevers, heredity, excess noise, adverse reactions to drugs, diseases such as meningitis and head injuries.

Nutritional Therapies.     Toxins such as caffeine, tobacco, aspirin, some diuretics, and chemotherapy can cause sensory hearing loss and benign tumors or ulcers in the ear. In some cases, these conditions can be prevented and treated with balanced diets low in saturated fats and cholesterol, wheat, dairy products, sugar, alcohol, and yeast. A study reported by J. Spencer in the October 1981 issue of the Southern Medical Journal showed that 1,400 patients with inner ear symptoms who reduced lipoprotein (proteins that carry fat) blood levels decreased pressure in their ears and improved their hearing. A small study reported by M. Strome in the February 1993 issue of Laryngoscope found that when several children with “fluctuating hearing loss” were placed on a low fat diet, their hearing returned.