Public opinion about marijuana and cannabinoids has changed remarkably over the last several decades. Many states have legalized the use of marijuana, THC, or cannabinoid products for medicinal purposes. The concept that some states (fewer) even allow the recreational use of pot would have been hard to imagine a decade ago.
Cannabinoids are any substances produced by the cannabis plant (basically, the marijuana plant). And we’re still discovering new things about cannabis in spite of the fact that it’s recently been legalized in numerous states. It’s a common idea that cannabinoid compounds have widespread healing attributes. But research implies a strong connection between the use of cannabinoids and tinnitus symptoms but there are also contradictory studies.
Cannabinoids come in numerous forms
At present, cannabinoids can be consumed in a number of varieties. It isn’t just pot or weed or whatever name you want to put on it. Other forms can include topical spreads, edibles, inhaled vapors, pills, and more.
The forms of cannabinoids available will vary state by state, and most of those forms are still actually federally illegal if the amount of THC is above 0.3%. That’s why most people tend to be quite cautious about cannabinoids.
The long-term complications and side effects of cannabinoid use are not well known and that’s the issue. Some new studies into how cannabinoids impact your hearing are perfect examples.
Studies connecting hearing to cannabinoids
Whatever you want to call it, cannabinoids have long been connected with helping a wide variety of medical conditions. According to anecdotal evidence vertigo, nausea, and seizures are just a few of the afflictions that cannabinoids can benefit. So the researchers wondered if cannabinoids could help treat tinnitus, too.
Turns out, cannabinoids might actually cause tinnitus. Ringing in the ears was reported, according to the study, by 20% of the participants who used cannabinoids. And tinnitus was never formerly experienced by those participants. What’s more, marijuana users were 20-times more likely to report experiencing tinnitus symptoms within 24 hours of consumption.
Further investigation suggested that marijuana use may exacerbate ear-ringing symptoms in those who already have tinnitus. Put simply, there’s some rather convincing evidence that cannabinoids and tinnitus don’t really work well together.
It should be mentioned that smoking has also been linked with tinnitus and the research wasn’t clear on how participants were using cannabinoids.
Unknown causes of tinnitus
Just because this connection has been discovered doesn’t automatically mean the root causes are all that well understood. That cannabinoids can have an influence on the middle ear and on tinnitus is rather clear. But it’s a lot less clear what’s causing that impact.
There’s bound to be additional research. Cannabinoids today come in so many varieties and forms that understanding the underlying link between these substances and tinnitus could help people make smarter choices.
Beware the miracle cure
Recently, there has been lots of marketing hype around cannabinoids. To some extent, that’s because of changing mindsets surrounding cannabinoids themselves (this also demonstrates a growing desire to get away from opioid use). But this new research makes clear that cannabinoids can and do cause some negative effects, especially if you’re concerned about your hearing.
You’ll never be able to avoid all of the cannabinoid enthusiasts and devotees in the world–the advertising for cannabinoids has been especially aggressive lately.
But a powerful connection between cannabinoids and tinnitus is certainly indicated by this research. So no matter how many ads for CBD oil you see, you should steer clear of cannabinoids if you’re concerned about tinnitus. It’s not exactly clear what the link between tinnitus and cannabinoids so use some caution.
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References
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/lio2.479
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5855477/
https://www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcoverage/aaohnsf/82180