Meniere’s Disease is an inner ear disease that affects the body’s vestibular & auditory systems.
The Vestibular system helps maintain the body’s balance & position during sitting or movement, while the auditory system helps people with the sense of hearing, thus determining the movement in a significant way.
Meniere’s Disease takes its name from the French Doctor that discovered it, Prosper Meniere.
Meniere’ Disease affects the labyrinth, an inner part of the ear which is made up of three distinct parts:
- Vestibule
- Semicircular canals
- Cochlea
The inner ear organs are filled with a special kind of fluid that helps coordinate signals from the brain that help in movement & hearing.
When a patient has Meniere’s Disease, their inner ear organs that regulate hearing & balance, get flooded with this fluid, thus making it difficult for the labyrinth to receive adequate signals from the brain, giving way to balance & hearing problems.
Apart from balance, movement, & hearing issues, Meniere’s Disease may also cause patients to feel nauseous & may sometimes also lead to feelings of Vertigo.
Signs & Symptoms of Meniere’s Disease
A trained healthcare professional can easily diagnose Meniere’s Disease based on the symptoms.
The most common Meniere’s Disease symptoms include:
- Vertigo
- Tinnitus
- Loss of hearing
- Feeling of fullness or pressure in the ear
Vertigo is a feeling that your surroundings are moving, dizziness, disorientation, & loss of balance. Vertigo is often accompanied by Nausea.
Tinnitus is the feeling of ringing or buzzing in your ears, that isn’t always harmful but can be very annoying.
According to medical professionals & scientific journals, patients with Meniere’s Disease can experience these symptoms anywhere from 20 minutes to 4 hours at a time.
Meniere’s Disease usually affects one ear, although there are instances where the disease occurs in both the ears.
As Meniere’s Disease progresses, the patient eventually loses their hearing, resulting in a permanent hearing loss in the affected ear(s).
Meniere’s Disease Treatment
Although it is true that Meniere’s Disease has no known cause or cure, it is indeed treatable & manageable with the proper diet & supplements. Meniere’s Disease diet includes supplements that restore the body’s fluid & blood system, thus giving the patient some relief from their symptoms.
Since Vertigo is a very well known side effect of Meniere’s Disease, these diet supplements often include dizziness treatment food, & are also a part of Vertigo treatment & Vertigo medicine.
A diet that can effectively help patients treat & manage Meniere’s Disease should focus on:
- Avoiding food items that make the body retain water,
- Adding food items with diuretic properties to reduce the amount of fluid in the body,
- Limiting food items that constrict blood flow
- Limiting the intake of food items that worsen the symptoms of Meniere’s Disease.
Water retention is something that makes the symptoms of Meniere’s Disease worse; however, this doesn’t mean that you should stop all fluid intake of course.
Rather than reducing your overall fluid intake, you should focus on limiting the consumption of fluids that contain added sugar or salt, which make you retain water & make it difficult for you to manage Meniere’s Disease.
Drinks like soda or concentrated juices fall under this category, & should be avoided as part of Meniere’s Disease treatment & Vertigo treatment.
As part of Meniere’s disease treatment, you should include these fluids in your diet:
- Water
- Milk
- Low-sugar fruit juices
If you are following an active Meniere’s Disease treatment plan that also includes Vertigo treatment, Vertigo medicines, & dizziness treatment foods, then diuretics will also form an important part of your diet.
Diuretics are drugs that make the kidney produce more urine, thus helping reduce volume, salt, & fluid levels in the body, thus making Meniere’s Disease more easily manageable.
Commonly prescribed diuretic drugs for Meniere’s Disease treatment include Chlorthalidone (Thalitone), & furosemide(Lasix).
Diuretic drugs also have certain side effects, including low blood pressure (hypotension), general weakness, cramps, & dehydration.
It’s important to consult with your doctor before taking any diuretic drugs for Meniere’s Disease treatment.
Besides these dietary supplements & diuretic drugs, Meniere’s Disease patients should try to limit their salt & sugar intake to be able to manage their condition better.
Try to avoid food items with a high concentration of simple sugar & salts like table sugar, honey, high fructose corn syrup, candy, chocolates, & most commercially available sweets and desserts.
Instead of these food items, try to include more food items with high amounts of complex sugars in them like legumes including nuts, beans, lentils, whole grains, brown rice, sweet potatoes, etc.
In a similar way, Meniere’s Disease patients should try to cut back on their salt intake, & reduce it to just around less than 2300 milligrams each day, in order to better manage their condition.
This can be easily achieved by including food items with low salt concentration such as fresh fruits & vegetables, unprocessed grains, fresh meats, poultry, & fish, in your diet.
Also, patients must remember to spread their sugar & salt intake throughout their day, rather than consuming these in a single meal.
Apart from reducing salt & sugar intake, Meniere’s Disease patients must also refrain from alcohol, tobacco, & caffeine, as these substances act as sensory stimulants, thus making the Tinnitus worse.
Alcohol & Caffeine also interfere with the body’s natural fluid regulation system, thus making the inner ear fluid retention problem worsen, leading to headaches, pressure, & Vertigo.
The nicotine present in cigarettes & other tobacco products constricts the blood flow towards the inner ear, thus making the situation worse overall.
Thus, avoiding these products should be an important part of Meniere’s Disease treatment, along with Vertigo treatment.
Over-The-Counter (OTC) Medications
Certain OTC medications that can help ease Meniere’s Disease symptoms, aside from the ones that doctors will prescribe to you, are:
- Dramamine, an anti-nausea medication that is also helpful in cases of Motion sickness & dizziness treatment, &
- Antihistamines, like Benadryl
Most of Meniere’s Disease patients suffer from swelling in the affected ear(s), a condition that can give rise to Vertigo. Taking anti-inflammatory drugs can be helpful in these instances, & can also help ease nausea & dizziness symptoms.
However, Meniere’s Disease patients must be careful to avoid medications like Antacids, which are packed with Sodium, thus leading to water retention making the symptoms of Meniere’s Disease worse.
They should also avoid Aspirin & non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs(NSAID) like ibuprofen, as these can cause water retention, as well as interfere with the body’s electrolyte balance, thus making Meniere’s Disease symptoms worse.
Aspirin is also known to worsen the symptoms of Tinnitus for patients of Meniere’s Disease.
Treatment for symptoms
Vertigo is the most well-known symptom of Meniere’s Disease. Thus, while Meniere’s Disease treatment, your doctor may also prescribe you Vertigo medicines & dizziness treatment food supplements.
Diazepam(valium) or lorazepam(Ativan) may be prescribed to you to help manage your Meniere’s Disease induced Vertigo & dizziness symptoms.
Besides these, anti-nausea medications like promethazine & meclizine may also be prescribed to help with the sudden episodes of Vertigo & dizziness.
Meniere’s Disease & accompanying Vertigo, dizziness, & nausea are easy to diagnose & treat, when done by reliable, experienced, & expert healthcare professionals, & infrastructurally superior clinics.
Neuroequilibrium range of clinics boasts of India’s best Vertigo, dizziness, & Meniere’s Disease experts that diagnose, treat, & help patients manage their condition with the best possible treatment plan & resources. The doctors offer you an accurate diagnosis, & draw up a personalised treatment plan based on that diagnosis for you.
With their unparalleled care, innovative treatment methods, & the latest medical technology, Neuroequilibrium clinics are the best shot in your fight against Vertigo.