Potassium Nitrate - Ouch!

[click]

I've had 9 and a half days of very quiet or non existent T. Been sucking menthyl & eating spicy foods because I'm suspecting congested eustachian tubes as reason for T.

Had something with potassium nitrate in it earlier today and POW - the T went through the roof. Edit - it was sodium nitrate - have just checked - sorry!!

It's quietened down again now & isn't really even there.

I'm sure there was another thread about nitrates but (as usual) I can't find it - so thought I'd post this anyway. Apparently they treat a lot of meats with it?

 

[Karen]

Hi, Click,

I've heard or read that, too, about potassium nitrate. Here is a link that discusses it:
http://deafness.about.com/b/2004/09/02/brush-teeth-lose-hearing.htm

It seems that Sensodyne toothpaste, the kind that deadens sensitivity, contains potassium nitrate, and using it can cause tinnitus or even hearing loss. My dentist had given me a free sample of Sensodyne, and when I heard that, I threw it away!

So many things that cause or worsen tinnitus. It's a jungle out there!!

 

[click]

Whoops - it was sodium nitrate ... not potassium - see what having a buzzing heads does!

Yes - I knew about sensodyne being iffy. It really is a nightmare to sort out isn't it Karen.

I'd really like to stop thinking about T all the time - especially as it disappears or goes so quiet for me... but it's really nasty... makes me have to think about it just to work out what to eat.

 

[Karen]

I know what you mean! I'm really tired of thinking about it all the time, too. I find that, as Mock Turtle says, when I get really distracted or involved in something else, like playing or listening to music, working on a project, etc., that the tinnitus really does recede into the background (most of the time, anyway!).

Yes, sodium nitrates can be bad for us, too. I found some turkey luncheon meat, Applewood Farms brand, (I'm in the U.S.), that doesn't have sodium nitrates, etc. in it. Products like that are hard to find!

 

[click]

The trouble is that.. these nitrates are in our water. Tap water - mineral water... they all have nitrates.

I looked into a reverse osmosis filtering system a while back (for different reasons) & they're not safe either.

Boiling water actually increases the nitrates present in the water & mineral water.. oh my god... once you start looking at the dangers of plastic bottles etc. it puts you right off!

So what are we supposed to drink?

 

[Petloy]

I am using Sensodyne for a long time now...I stopped and switch to Arm and Hammer after reading this...Hope it helps me.

 

[click]

I've always thought that something is causing my T to fluctuate , to disappear altogether & to come back - that's why I've been trying to eat 'congestion relief' foods recently... and it has helped (although it's always so difficult with T that fluctuates so much to be sure that something is helping).

Now I am really wondering whether food is the culprit. Even though my diet is healthy it could still be high in nitrates. Carrots are high in nitrates for instance and I drink mineral water (Volvic isn't particularly high in nitrates but 6mg per litre may still be causing it). Perhaps those bad days of T were the days I had carrots...Perhaps the water in Cornwall had more nitrates in in it than the water in Hampshire.

I did suspect mineral water before because I drank more of it in Cornwall (where the T started) but I've certainly never suspected fruit and veg - but now I'm going to.

 

[Meecat]

Could it be the sodium? Sodium is basically salt and some people say salt makes theirs worse.

 

[click]

Hiya Meecat

Yes - it could be the salt but the way my T fluctuates makes me think it's something else. I know that salt is in most food but I rarely eat processed food.. almost all is cooked from fresh & I never add salt to anything.

It's just that the fluctuations - from 'not there at all' to 'buzzing like mad' leads me to believe that it's something I'm eating or doing every day - some days doing it & some days not (good grammmar eh!).

Apparently nitrates are in immense quantities in non organically grown carrots, lettuce, spinach etc. Also sproutings - like mung beans & alfalfa..

I eat a lot of these! But then some days I don't... maybe those few days are the days when the T disappears.

I'm exhausted just thinking about it all!

I also drank a lot more mineral water (even used it to make tea etc.) when I moved house 3 weeks before the start of my T. Of course there was also a different water supply through the tap & I used that for cooking etc. Nitrate quantities in water supplies vary - the EEC have said that they can be 50mg per litre - & I can't be sure that this wasn't the reason for my T in the first place.

So.. it's organically grown veg (nitrates leak in from the soil mainly because of intensive farming techniques since WW2) & no carrots, spinach or leafy greens for me over the next few weeks.

BTW - beetroot, bacon & cured cold meats contains tons of this stuff. I don't eat these anyway but someone else here may find that useful.

You never know - maybe it will help or even cure it (I live in hope)

How are you doing anyway. Are you feeling any better.. overall? Hope so.

Click

 

[click]

I am using Sensodyne for a long time now...I stopped and switch to Arm and Hammer after reading this...Hope it helps me.

I don't use sensodyne or anything similar but I have ordered Green People's Mandarin Toothpaste for Children now - it doesn't seem to contain any of the nasties at all. Probably tastes yummy too

 

[Fish]

What the...?

Sensodyne toothpaste being a possible cause of tinnitus? Are you serious? My 8th teeth started coming out slowly and my gums are bleeding, I have been using sendosyne exclusively for few months now...

 

[click]

What the...?

Sensodyne toothpaste being a possible cause of tinnitus? Are you serious? My 8th teeth started coming out slowly and my gums are bleeding, I have been using sendosyne exclusively for few months now...

Hiya Fish,

That reply sounds similar to the one when I suggested that silence can cause T

Potassium nitrate is actually used in loads of toothpastes.

Karen wrote about toothpaste in a thread on here.. and she gave a link to the following page:

http://deafness.about.com/b/2004/09/02/brush-teeth-lose-hearing.htm

Here's a quote from that link:

"I recently used Sensodyne toothpaste with 5% Potassium Nitrate (saltpeter) for three weeks, twice per day. It took over 4 weeks (I stopped using after 3 weeks per instructions) and my tooth nerve pain went away. It appeared to me that Potassium Nitrate deadened the nerve and thus the pain. Like you I was left with tinnitus and hearing loss in one ear at around 8,000 Hz. I didn't have a full feeling in my ear, but I did have a numbness in my left ear after waking up several mornings. The numbness was accompanied by hearing loss and touching my left ear or left side of my face near my ear resulted in a tinny sound … unlike the normal sound of a finger on your skin."

Who knows? It seems as possible to me as Ibuprofen & some of the other theories. It depends if you are really sensitive to the nitrates?

As my T is really really low or non existent for days & then suddenly comes on I'm just trying to find out what is causing it to come back & nitrates are the thing I suspect right now.

Could change next week though!

Click

 

[Petloy]

Fish...I've been using it for more than a year, I read also on this website and click the link given by Karen above. So I've stopped using it as of yesterday I'll keep you updated. Here's another link for your perusal guys!
http://www.actiononhearingloss.org.uk/community/forums/tinnitus.aspx?g=posts&t=1125

 

[Molan]

For those worried about the toothpaste they use why not make your own!!

Check out this short video below by a Holistic Dentist on how to make one that is free of all those nasty unnecessary chemicals they put in toothpastes.



I have a Sonicare toothbrush and don't really use toothpaste that much as it is so effective without the need for anything else. However I occasionally just brush with Aluminin free Sodium bicarbonate. Much safer, healthier and much cheaper then buying nasty chemical commercial toothpastes in my opinion.

 

[sworthi245]

I have sensitive teeth, and prior to my T, I used sensitive tooth toothpaste. I stopped about 6 weeks ago, with improvement in my T. Unfortunately, my teeth started to get a little sensitive again. So, I tried the same toothpaste again. Three and a half days of misery with buzzing ears. numbness, etc.

After some research on the net, found a toothpaste that I tried two days ago for sensitive teeth, and so far, no buzzing or side effects. The toothpaste is Crest Pro-Health for Life - active ingredient stannous fluoride. About $3.57 (US) at mass retailers. It is designed for people 50 years and older. The only negative of the toothpaste is that it may cause staining due the ingredient stannous fluoride. It has a disclaimer "is specially formulated to help prevent staining". It also says staining can be removed by dentist. My guess is brushing with baking soda would remove it as well.

Hope this helps someone. Please post bad side effects you may experience.

Susan W.

PS

Tastes nasty, gritty to begin with, and not very minty, which does not seem to freshen breath as much as others. But, it does seem to help with sensitivity, with is the issue to be addressed.

TTFN!

 

[Sound Wave]

Wow, I have also used Sensodyne...

 

[Jayro]

Also a Sensodyne user (not now) and was putting large amount on a tooth that ached a little and leaving it there when I went to sleep. Since doing that I have high pitched tinnitus which is at about 14'000HZ and loud enough! I feel there is a link here.... impossible to be sure of course...

However, when you read about potassium channels in the mouth being blocked by Sensodyne (from their own website) and then how some are seeing a reduction of tinnitus with parkinsons disease drugs, which also alter the potasium channels... you may like me see a link! Autifony is a company that seem to be working on a link here too with a Kv3 channel modifier drug.

I've been looking around the net for studies, anecdotal evidence and general advice on how potassium channels work. The biochemistry is complex and hard to understand often, however in short, I am now thinking taking Bicarbonate Soda maybe a home remedy for helping return the potassium channel affected to normal. Just learning about this so interested in your thoughts.

 

[65vwbus]

I know this is an old post, but i've been thinking a bit today.
I've been taking Retigabine for neuropathic pain in my face and head, and tinnitus which started at the same time, so must be related. It's working great for my pain levels, and helping a bit with the tinnitus too, although i'm not on a huge dose yet.
Last week I drank some mango juice (which is high in potassium) for the first time, and noticed the pain relief continued longer that day. I'm no doctor, and have no idea really, but Retigabine opens potassium channels, could it be that food and drink high in potassium make the drug work better?
I've also read bits and pieces online, and know that sodium channel blockers, like Sodium Valproate can help with pain. Tinnitus and pain are caused by certain channels in the brain being open or closed and staying that way. When you ate the sodium nitrate, could it be that the extra sodium made the sodium channels open even more, therefore causing worse tinnitus?

 

[RichL]

I know this is an old post, but i've been thinking a bit today.
I've been taking Retigabine for neuropathic pain in my face and head, and tinnitus which started at the same time, so must be related. It's working great for my pain levels, and helping a bit with the tinnitus too, although i'm not on a huge dose yet.
Last week I drank some mango juice (which is high in potassium) for the first time, and noticed the pain relief continued longer that day. I'm no doctor, and have no idea really, but Retigabine opens potassium channels, could it be that food and drink high in potassium make the drug work better?
I've also read bits and pieces online, and know that sodium channel blockers, like Sodium Valproate can help with pain. Tinnitus and pain are caused by certain channels in the brain being open or closed and staying that way. When you ate the sodium nitrate, could it be that the extra sodium made the sodium channels open even more, therefore causing worse tinnitus?

Interesting, Wouldn't surprise me if you are correct in your thinking.

Would be interesting to research the science and find out!

Sometimes I think we at TT should apply for some government grants and do our own research, there's a few here who have discovered sh#t by experimenting a little!

 

[cspc]

I had a toothpaste with potassium nitrate and a mouthwash with chlorexidine from 2013 - 2016 and a toothpaste with stannous fluoride, propylene glycol and a mouthwash with propylene glycol from 2016 - 2018. Also stannous fluoride stains teeth (it stained mine in the first 2 months of use). It explains why my ears are nuts, it started with the toothpastes back in 2013 but it was just a hissing. I was prescribed a toothpaste with hexetidine but I read somewhere that it's ototoxic when used in surgeries on the neck and ear. I usually sleep with my mouth open and sometimes toss and turn my ear on the pillow. I am looking for another toothpaste. Any suggestions?