Acupuncture for Tinnitus: Does It Actually Work?
Summary
TLDRDr. Ben Thompson, an audiologist and founder of Treble Health, discusses the potential of acupuncture in tinnitus management. Despite its growing popularity in mainstream healthcare, research on acupuncture's effectiveness for tinnitus is inconclusive. Thompson suggests that while acupuncture may not be a primary treatment, it could be a supplementary approach, especially for stress reduction. He emphasizes the importance of evidence-based treatments like sound therapy and coaching for managing tinnitus, recommending these over acupuncture due to stronger scientific backing.
Takeaways
- π¨ββοΈ Dr. Ben Thompson, an audiologist with an audiology residency from UCSF, discusses acupuncture's potential role in tinnitus management.
- π₯ Dr. Thompson is the founder of an online telehealth company focused on tinnitus, which serves hundreds of patients monthly.
- π The script reviews research on acupuncture for tinnitus, finding mixed results and a lack of strong scientific support.
- πͺ‘ Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medicine practice involving needle insertion to rebalance 'chi' or life energy.
- π§ββοΈ Dr. Thompson personally found acupuncture relaxing, likening it to meditation, suggesting it could reduce stress and improve well-being.
- π A 2011 study suggested acupuncture might improve quality of life by reducing stress, which can exacerbate tinnitus.
- π€ The script acknowledges stress as a significant factor in tinnitus, potentially causing or worsening the condition.
- π§ Traditional audiology management, such as sound therapy and coaching, is recommended over acupuncture due to stronger scientific evidence.
- π‘ Acupuncture could be considered as a supplementary treatment alongside evidence-based methods for a holistic approach.
- π The Tinnitus Guide by Treble Health is offered as a resource for the latest treatments and management tips for tinnitus.
Q & A
What is Dr. Ben Thompson's profession and where did he complete his residency?
-Dr. Ben Thompson is an audiologist who completed his audiology residency at a major hospital in San Francisco, California, UCSF.
What is the focus of Dr. Thompson's online telehealth company?
-The online telehealth company started by Dr. Thompson is 100% focused on tinnitus, seeing hundreds of tinnitus patients every month.
What is acupuncture and its origin according to the video?
-Acupuncture is a form of traditional Chinese medicine that involves inserting needles at specific locations along the body to rebalance the flow of energy, known as 'chi' in Chinese medicine.
What is the theory behind the use of acupuncture for disease or pathology?
-The theory behind acupuncture suggests that disease or pathology can be linked to a disruption of the flow of energy in the body, and that inserting needles at specific points can help restore balance.
Why did Dr. Thompson personally try acupuncture?
-Dr. Thompson tried acupuncture for holistic health benefits, not specifically for tinnitus, and found it to be relaxing and similar to meditation.
What is the general research consensus on acupuncture's effectiveness for treating tinnitus according to the video?
-The research on acupuncture for treating tinnitus is mixed, and the video does not present any scientific evidence supporting acupuncture as a significant treatment for tinnitus.
What was the finding of the 2011 study mentioned in the video regarding acupuncture and tinnitus?
-The 2011 study found some benefits in overall quality of life related to tinnitus severity for the group that had acupuncture treatments, possibly due to stress reduction.
How does stress relate to tinnitus according to the video?
-Stress is known to exacerbate tinnitus or make it worse, and can even lead to stress-induced tinnitus. Reducing stress can improve tinnitus symptoms.
What is the recommended approach for treating tinnitus according to Dr. Thompson?
-Dr. Thompson recommends starting with evidence and science-based treatments like sound therapy and one-on-one coaching, and considering holistic health interventions like acupuncture as supplementary.
What are the services provided by Treble Health according to the video?
-Treble Health provides medical devices and services for tinnitus management, including sound therapy treatment devices and coaching around concentration, attention, stress, anxiety, and sleep difficulties.
How can viewers get in touch with Treble Health for more information or questions?
-Viewers can visit the website treblehealth.com to learn more about Treble Health's medical devices and services, or call them directly from the website.
Outlines
π¨ββοΈ Dr. Ben Thompson on Acupuncture for Tinnitus
Dr. Ben Thompson, an audiologist with a residency at UCSF and founder of an online telehealth company, introduces the topic of whether acupuncture can help manage tinnitus. He explains acupuncture as a traditional Chinese medicine practice involving the insertion of needles at specific body points to rebalance energy flow, known as 'chi'. Thompson shares his personal experience with acupuncture for holistic health benefits, finding it relaxing and meditative. Despite his non-expertise in acupuncture, he discusses the mixed research findings, noting the lack of strong scientific support for its use in tinnitus treatment. However, he mentions a 2011 study suggesting potential benefits in reducing stress, which could indirectly improve tinnitus. Thompson emphasizes the importance of starting with evidence-based treatments and considering holistic approaches like acupuncture as supplementary options.
π§ Traditional Audiology Management vs. Acupuncture
In the second paragraph, Dr. Thompson discusses the impact of severe tinnitus on individuals' lives and encourages trying all possible treatments, starting with evidence-based options like those provided by Treble Health. He outlines traditional audiology management, which includes sound therapy devices and one-on-one coaching for stress, anxiety, and sleep issues. Thompson suggests this approach as more proven and effective compared to acupuncture, which lacks convincing scientific evidence. He advises using acupuncture as a supplementary treatment rather than a primary one. The video concludes with Thompson inviting viewers to visit Treble Health's website for more information on medical devices and services, and he encourages engagement with the video through likes, subscriptions, and shares.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘Acupuncture
π‘Tinnitus
π‘Telehealth
π‘Chi
π‘Meridians
π‘Stress
π‘Holistic Health
π‘Evidence-based
π‘Treble Health
π‘Audiology
Highlights
Acupuncture may help reduce tinnitus, but its effectiveness is not scientifically proven.
Dr. Ben Thompson, an audiologist, discusses acupuncture's potential role in tinnitus management.
Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medicine practice becoming more mainstream.
Needles are inserted at specific body locations to rebalance energy flow, or 'chi'.
Dr. Thompson shares his personal experience with acupuncture for holistic health benefits.
Acupuncture's relaxing nature is compared to meditation, which may aid in stress reduction.
Research on acupuncture for tinnitus is mixed, with no strong scientific support found.
A 2011 study suggested acupuncture might improve quality of life by reducing stress.
Stress is known to exacerbate tinnitus, potentially leading to stress-induced tinnitus.
Dr. Thompson's personal tinnitus experience linked to stress is shared as an example.
Traditional audiology management is recommended over acupuncture for tinnitus treatment.
Sound therapy and one-on-one coaching are evidence-based treatments for tinnitus.
Acupuncture can be used in conjunction with evidence-based treatments as a supplementary approach.
Treble Health offers medical devices and services for tinnitus management.
Dr. Thompson encourages viewers to explore both evidence-based and holistic health interventions for tinnitus.
The video concludes with a call to action for viewers to like, subscribe, and share for more helpful content.
Transcripts
- Are you wondering whether acupuncture, needles
in targeted areas on the body
or the face can help reduce tinnitus?
Maybe someone has recommended you to try this.
My name is Dr. Ben Thompson.
I'm an audiologist.
I completed an audiology residency
at a major hospital in San Francisco, California, UCSF,
and a few years later
I decided to start an online telehealth company.
Now today, we have 12 employees,
and we see hundreds of tinnitus patients every month.
We're a hundred percent focused on tinnitus
also pronounced tinnitus,
and in this video,
I will give some results, research
and a summary on how acupuncture could be used
in your tinnitus management plan.
And I will talk about
if the science supports the condition, other considerations,
and really what works for tinnitus, if not acupuncture.
So if you're new to this channel, please like this video
because it helps YouTube spread the information to others.
Also, subscribe by finding that subscribe button.
It matters a lot to me personally.
Thank you so much.
What is acupuncture?
Well, it's a form of traditional Chinese medicine,
and it's becoming more common in mainstream healthcare.
I'm not an expert in acupuncture,
but I will comment on some of the research
that our team has found.
In acupuncture, there are needles that are inserted
at specific locations
along the body to rebalance the flow of energy
which in Chinese medicine they call the chi.
So that flow of energy is moving throughout certain pathways
along the body that they call meridians.
Those needles stimulate parts
of the central nervous system, and the theory here is
that when you have a disease or pathology,
some of that can be linked
to a disruption of that flow of energy in your body.
So this can be used for managing stress, overall wellbeing
or pain management, and it would be performed
by a licensed practitioner in the state that you live in.
I've personally had acupuncture just to try it
not necessarily for my tinnitus
but more for the holistic health benefits.
I only went once.
It was fine.
It was enjoyable.
It was a little different to have the needles in my body,
but I found it to be very relaxing like a meditation
because while you're in the session,
you typically have your eyes closed,
and you're just focused on your breath and relaxing.
So if that's the only benefit of the practice,
then it's still good and it can still help us reduce stress
and have a healthy lifestyle.
But if there also are
some traditional Chinese medicine benefits,
then that's even better.
So can acupuncture help tinnitus?
The research on this subject is pretty mixed.
We looked up a few different articles.
We did not find anything that was supporting acupuncture
for tinnitus from a scientific perspective.
So overall, we're not seeing acupuncture
as a significant treatment for tinnitus.
However, stick around because we do have
some other treatments that work quite well.
This is a short break from today's video to
announce the Tinnitus Guide by Treble Health.
Do you want to learn
about the newest tinnitus treatments and management tips?
Click the link in the description
of this video to get your free copy
of the Tinnitus Guide by Treble Health.
(soft music)
There was a 2011 study that did find some benefits
to overall quality of life related to tinnitus severity
for the group that had acupuncture treatments.
So the authors of that study
thought that the possible reason was
because when you're reducing stress,
then your tinnitus can improve.
So part of stress can be stress related
or psychologically related,
and when we improve that kind of response,
that kind of daily living,
then the tinnitus itself can get better.
So the researchers are looking at that as a possible option
for those who are looking for a holistic health plan
for their tinnitus to potentially consider things
like acupuncture or other stress reduction techniques.
Let's talk about acupuncture and stress.
Stress is a known factor to exacerbate tinnitus
or make it worse, and this can even lead
to what's considered stress-induced tinnitus.
Either my tinnitus spiked,
it got louder because of stress,
or the stress maybe was the cause or part of the cause
with tinnitus.
The most common example of this is
I have a mild high pitch hearing loss,
but out of nowhere, I developed tinnitus.
And the months leading up to tinnitus,
they were very stressful in my life.
I go to the ENT doctor, they measure the hearing loss,
and they say, "Oh, you have a mild hearing loss.
Your tinnitis is because of the hearing loss."
Well, I think that they're missing the point here
that the tinnitus is mainly because of the stress,
but it's also because of the hearing loss
even if it's a mild hearing loss.
So that's an example of how stress
and tinnitus can overlap, and that's something
that we see quite often at treblehealth.com.
The patients who work with us for our medical devices,
for our treatments, they often have a history
of stress that was significant leading up to tinnitus.
When we reduce stress, we can release endorphins,
stimulate the nerves in a positive way
and that helps you relax.
Now, let's talk about acupuncture
versus traditional audiological
or audiology management of tinnitus.
Severe tinnitus can impact many aspect
of an individual's life.
There's no doubt.
We see that every day.
If you have moderate to severe tinnitus,
I want you to try everything that can help.
So start with the things
that are evidence and science based,
like speaking to a member of our team,
looking at what we provide at Treble Health.
That's going to be a great start
and provide most of the tools that are out there right now.
There are other complimentary things
like relaxation, meditation, holistic health
potential medical consultation, depending on the cause
of your tinnitus, that can also really help your tinnitus.
So traditional audiology management would use
sound therapy treatment devices on the ears
that are worn for a period of time
and then stopped to be used after that
and as well as one-on-one coaching
around the concentration, attention, stress, anxiety
and sleep difficulties that you may be having.
That's what we see as working for most individuals.
So I want you to start with that treatment first,
and I'd rather you have that as your primary treatment
than using acupuncture
because the audiology management treatment is
just more proven.
There's more science to back it up.
There's more case studies, success stories to back that up.
The acupuncture method,
it can be helpful, as we've discussed,
but it's not a convincing degree of evidence that we see
so we don't recommend it as a primary tool.
However, both interventions can be used in tandem.
So if you're curious about both, then I would try both
and I would lean on the more
evidence-based scientific approach
that we offer at Treble Health
and consider the holistic health interventions
which are less scientifically proven
as a good supplementary piece.
Thank you for watching this video.
If you have any questions, please go to our website
treblehealth.com and learn more
about the medical devices and the services that we provide.
If you have any questions,
you can also call us off of our website.
Thank you for watching this video.
My name is Dr. Ben Thompson.
Remember to like, subscribe,
share this video because I know it's helpful.
And thanks for being here.
I'll see you on another video on our YouTube channel.
Bye-bye.
Thank you for watching today's video with Treble Health.
Check out our next video by clicking the button
on this screen or another recommended video.
And if you're not already,
make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Thanks so much.
See you on the next video.
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