Health
Ask a doc: ‘Why are my ears ringing, and should I see a doctor?’
Anyone who has experienced a persistent ringing, buzzing or whooshing sound in their ears knows how annoying it can be — but is it a sign of something serious?
Approximately 50 million people in the United States are affected by tinnitus, a condition that fills the ears with internal sounds no one else can hear, according to Cleveland Clinic.
Daniel S. Troast, doctor of audiology at HearUSA, a hearing aid provider in Winter Garden, Florida, shared with Fox News Digital the symptoms, causes and myths surrounding tinnitus, as well as ways to treat and prevent it.
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Symptoms of tinnitus
“Most of us have experienced ringing in our ears after going to a concert, but if it lasts for less than a day, it’s very often not a cause for concern,” said Troast.
Some 50 million people in the U.S. are affected by tinnitus, which is a condition that fills the ears with internal sounds. (iStock)
Tinnitus is defined as a “persistent ringing, buzzing or whooshing sound in the ears that the patient can hear, but no one else can,” he said.
Some patients have even reported hearing crickets or music in their heads, according to the doctor.
Common causes of tinnitus
The most common cause of tinnitus is noise-induced hearing loss. Approximately 90% of people suffering from tinnitus have some form of hearing loss, according to Mayo Clinic.
“Tinnitus is more a brain condition than it is a hearing condition,” said Troast. “Essentially, it’s the brain’s response to a change in the auditory system.”
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For someone with normal hearing, the brain is used to receiving sound signals at various frequencies moving through the ear canal.
“However, when someone has hearing loss, the brain stops receiving those signals — and the tinnitus is the brain’s response to this miscommunication with the ears,” according to the audiologist.
A doctor holds and examines a model of a human inner ear and auditory system. “Hearing loss and resulting tinnitus could come from a single exposure — like military personnel firing weapons — or more commonly, built up over years of exposure to noise at dangerously high levels.” (iStock)
“Hearing loss and resulting tinnitus could come from a single exposure — like military personnel firing weapons — or more commonly, built up over years of exposure to noise at dangerously high levels, like a musician or frequent concertgoer,” Troast said.
Other possible causes of tinnitus and hearing loss include certain medications, blockages from earwax, ear infections, dental issues and head or neck injuries.
Myths about ear ringing
The most prominent myth is that tinnitus can be cured, said Troast.
“While it can be managed effectively, nothing will cure tinnitus entirely. Because of this, bogus tinnitus ‘cures’ regularly circulate on social media,” the doctor warned.
“Tinnitus is a brain condition, not an ear condition — anything that goes into your ear would do nothing to fix the underlying problem.”
Some of the most common recommendations include ear drops and supplements, which have no effect aside from a potential placebo, according to Troast.
“As mentioned earlier, tinnitus is a brain condition, not an ear condition,” he said.
The most common cause of tinnitus is noise-induced hearing loss. Roughly 90% of people suffering from tinnitus have some form of hearing loss. (iStock)
“So, anything that goes into your ear would do nothing to fix the underlying problem, which is a miscommunication between your ears and your brain.”
Another faux “cure” involves tapping the back of the head to create a reverberating sound.
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“While this may stop the tinnitus for a few seconds and may be an effective coping method, it will never make the tinnitus go away,” said Troast.
“When a person taps their head in this manner, they’re replacing the sound of their tinnitus with the sound of the thumping — but when the thumping stops, the tinnitus returns.”
When to see a doctor
While tinnitus isn’t physically dangerous, Troast warned that it can be extremely damaging for patients’ mental health, with proven negative effects on psychological well-being.
“If you’re suffering from tinnitus, a great first step is always to see an audiologist who can conduct a hearing test,” he advised. “The audiologist will be able to determine if hearing loss is the root cause of your tinnitus and can then establish a treatment plan.”
Experts recommend seeing an audiologist for persistent tinnitus symptoms. (iStock)
That plan will most often include hearing aids, which will amplify external sounds to help reduce the person’s focus on the tinnitus.
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Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with a psychologist can also be very effective when administered in tandem with audiological treatment, Troast said.
“CBT teaches the patient to live with tinnitus, helping them understand that they can acknowledge the existence of the sound without the doom and gloom that it’s typically associated with,” he said.
Can tinnitus be prevented?
The best way to prevent tinnitus is to limit your exposure to loud noise, the audiologist said.
He recommends wearing hearing protection in loud environments such as concerts and sporting events and while using loud equipment like a lawnmower or leaf blower.
“It’s also important to limit your time listening to headphones and earbuds at loud volumes,” he added.
While tinnitus isn’t physically dangerous, a doctor warned it can be extremely damaging for patients’ mental health, with proven negative effects on psychological well-being. (iStock)
Another step toward prevention is getting a regular hearing test.
“Hearing tests not only help in determining if you suffer from hearing loss, as mentioned above, but they also have the potential to point you in a direction that will treat both hearing loss and tinnitus,” said Troast.
Avoiding total silence is another way to reduce symptoms.
“Patients often say it’s most noticeable when they’re trying to sleep,” said Troast. “Having some sort of white noise or brown noise playing in the background can help drown out the incessant ringing.”
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As colorectal cancer (CRC) is now the leading cause of cancer death in adults under 50, a new report reveals some surprising shifts in the incidence of the disease.
Although rates of CRC have been declining among seniors, those 65 and under are facing a rise in diagnoses, according to a report titled Colorectal Cancer Statistics, 2026, from the American Cancer Society.
Adults 65 and younger comprise nearly half (45%) of all new colorectal cancer cases — a significant increase from 27% in 1995, states the report, which was published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.
The disease is rising fastest among adults 20 to 49 years old, at a rate of 3% per year.
Colorectal cancer is now the leading cause of cancer death in adults under 50. (iStock)
Among adults 50 and under, 75% of colorectal cancers are diagnosed at an advanced stage. Half of the diagnoses in that age range are made between the ages of 45 and 49. Although that age group is eligible to receive routine screenings, just 37% do so.
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The report also revealed that rectal cancer is on the rise, now accounting for about one-third (32%) of all CRC cases — an increase from 27% in the mid-2000s.
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“After decades of progress, the risk of dying from colorectal cancer is climbing in younger generations of men and women, confirming a real uptick in disease because of something we’re doing or some other exposure,” said Rebecca Siegel, senior scientific director, surveillance research at the American Cancer Society and lead author of the report, in a press release.
Among adults 50 and under, 75% of colorectal cancers are diagnosed at an advanced stage. Half of the diagnoses in that age range are made between the ages of 45 and 49. (iStock)
“We need to redouble research efforts to understand the cause, but also circumvent deaths through earlier detection by educating clinicians and the general public about symptoms and increasing screening in people 45-54 years.”
It is projected that 158,850 new cases of colorectal cancer will be diagnosed this year, and that the disease will cause 55,230 deaths, per the report.
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More than half of CRC cases can be linked to high-risk behaviors, the researchers said. Those include lack of nutrition, high alcohol consumption, smoking, lack of exercise and obesity.
“These findings further underscore that colorectal cancer is worsening among younger generations and highlight the immediate need for eligible adults to begin screening at the recommended age of 45,” said Dr. William Dahut, chief scientific officer at the American Cancer Society.
When the disease is caught at a local (early) stage, the five-year survival rate is 95%. (iStock)
“The report also shines a light on the crucial importance of continued funding for research to help discover new therapies to treat the disease and advance patient care.”
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When the disease is caught at a local (early) stage, the five-year survival rate is 95%, the report stated.
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A new study suggests that middle-aged men may be more vulnerable to faster biological aging, potentially linked to exposure to “forever chemicals.”
The research, published in the journal Frontiers in Aging, examined how perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, more commonly known as PFAS, could impact aging at the cellular level.
PFAS are synthetic chemicals commonly used in nonstick cookware, food packaging, water-resistant fabrics and other consumer products, the study noted.
Their chemical structure makes them highly resistant to breaking down, allowing them to accumulate in water, soil and the human body.
Chinese researchers analyzed blood samples from 326 adults enrolled in the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 1999 and 2000.
A new study suggests that middle-aged men could face accelerated biological aging at the cellular level due to exposure to PFAS. (iStock)
The researchers measured levels of 11 PFAS compounds in participants’ blood and used DNA-based “epigenetic clocks” — tools that analyze chemical changes to DNA to estimate biological age — to determine how quickly their bodies were aging at the cellular level, the study stated.
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Two compounds, perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) and perfluorooctanesulfonamide (PFOSA), were detected in 95% of participants.
Higher concentrations of those chemicals were associated with faster biological aging in men of certain age groups, but not in women.
“People should not panic.”
The compounds most strongly linked to accelerated aging were not the PFAS chemicals that typically receive the most public attention, the researchers noted.
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“The associations were strongest in adults aged 50 to 64, particularly in men,” Dr. Xiangwei Li, professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine and the study’s corresponding author, told Fox News Digital.
“While this does not establish that PFAS cause aging, it suggests that these widely present ‘forever chemicals’ may be linked to molecular changes related to long-term health and aging.”
The study found that two of the compounds were detected in 95% of participants, and higher levels were linked to faster biological aging in men ages 50–64. (iStock)
Midlife may represent a more sensitive biological period, when the body becomes more vulnerable to age-related stressors, according to the researchers.
Lifestyle factors, such as smoking, may influence biological aging markers, potentially increasing vulnerability to environmental pollutants.
While Li said “people should not panic,” she does recommend looking for reasonable ways to reduce exposure.
That might mean checking local drinking water reports, using certified water filters designed to reduce PFAS, and limiting the use of stain- or grease-resistant products when alternatives are available.
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Meaningful reductions in PFAS exposure will likely depend on broader regulatory action and environmental cleanup efforts, Li added.
The researchers noted that midlife could be a particularly sensitive stage, when the body is more susceptible to stressors associated with aging. (iStock)
Study limitations
The researchers outlined several important limitations of the research, including that the findings show an association, but do not prove that PFAS directly causes accelerated aging.
“The study is cross-sectional, meaning exposure and aging markers were measured at the same time, so we cannot determine causality,” Li told Fox News Digital.
The study was also relatively small, limited to 326 adults age 50 or older, which means the findings may not apply to younger people or broader populations.
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Researchers measured PFAS levels using data collected between 1999 and 2000, and today’s exposure patterns may differ.
Li added that while PFAS is known to persist in the environment and the body, these results should be validated through larger, more recent studies that follow participants over time.
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