Food-borne Neurotoxins and Tinnitus:
Sweet & Salty Poison

by Barry Keate

Part 1: Aspartame

During the last half century, there have been increasing amounts of food additives in the American food supply. These substances have been added for the purpose of improving nutrition, food preservation and improving taste. Food additives that improve taste will be the subject of the next two newsletters.

There are two primary food additives whose sole function is to improve taste in order to sell more food products. These are aspartame and monosodium glutamate (MSG). Aspartame is the low-calorie sweetener sold under the names NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, Indulge and Equal-Measure. MSG is a flavor enhancer used in many processed and prepackaged foods.

Both aspartame and monosodium glutamate are excitatory neurotransmitters. That is, they excite brain neurons and increase levels of electrical activity in the brain and the auditory cortex, the area where tinnitus is perceived. We know that people with tinnitus have an elevated level of electrical activity and reducing this activity is helpful for tinnitus. Increasing electrical activity increases tinnitus. A previous article discussing elevated states of electrical activity in the brain and tinnitus can be seen by clicking here.

In this article, we will discuss the issue of aspartame in diet foods and specifically in diet colas, and MSG which is found hidden under various guises in many pre-packaged foods.

Certain allegations discussed here are controversial and have been vigorously denied by both the Food and Drug Administration and food industry. I was hesitant to discuss something that has strong proponents on both sides. However, after reading excerpts from a book by an esteemed neurosurgeon and newspaper articles about the dangers posed by aspartame and monosodium glutamate, I decided there is enough data to at least bring this issue to people’s attention. People with tinnitus need to be especially careful with substances that may worsen their condition or may have even caused it in the first place.

Aspartame was accidentally discovered in 1965 by researchers at the G.D. Searle Company. A chemist was testing a potential anti-ulcer drug when he licked his hand and noticed a very sweet taste. The rest is history.

G.D. Searle Company applied for and received FDA approval in 1974 to add aspartame to dry foods as a low-calorie sweetener. Several months later approval was put on hold by objections filed with the FDA by neuroscience researchers and consumer advocate groups. The issue was potentially falsified safety tests conducted by Searle on the safety of aspartame.

Over the objections of six of the nine members of the FDA’s Scientific Advisory Board, Dr. Arthur Hull Hayes, Jr., Commissioner of the FDA, approved aspartame for use in dry foods in 1981. Then in 1983 the FDA raised the Acceptable Daily Intake measure (ADI) to allow its introduction into the beverage field. Shortly after this approval, Dr. Hayes left the FDA and became a consultant with the public relations firm for G.D. Searle Company.

During a congressional investigation in 1985 to scrutinize Seale’s aspartame safety tests, Dr. Jacqueline Verrett, a former FDA toxicologist and FDA task force member testified that the safety tests were a “disaster” and should have been “thrown out.” Dr. Marvin Legator, professor of environmental toxicology at the University of Texas, characterized them as “scientifically irresponsible and disgraceful” and said, “I’ve never seen anything as bad as Searle’s.”

Russell Blaylock, MD, professor of neurosurgery at the University of Mississippi wrote the book Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills. In it, he explains that aspartate (from aspartame) and glutamate (from MSG) are neurotransmitters normally found in the brain and spinal cord. When aspartate reaches certain levels it causes the death of brain neurons. He makes use of almost 500 scientific references to show how excess excitatory neurotransmitters in our food supply are causing serious chronic neurological disorders and a number of other acute symptoms.

Dr. Blaylock makes the case that too much aspartate or glutamate in the brain kills neurons by allowing the influx of too much calcium into the cells. This influx triggers excessive amounts of free radicals which kills the cells. The neural cell damage that can be caused by these compounds is why they are referred to as “excitotoxins.” They excite or stimulate the neural cells to death.

Ginkgo biloba and zinc, found in Arches Tinnitus Relief Formula, are both antioxidants. Ginkgo biloba is also a powerful neuro-protector and helps to mitigate some of the damage done by excitotoxins. Numerous clinical studies have demonstrated ginkgo biloba’s ability to protect neuronal systems in the brain.

By the FDA’s own admission, 73 percent of all food complaints are aspartame related. A few of the 90 different documented symptoms listed in the FDA Adverse Reaction Monitoring System include: headache/migraine, memory loss, hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, seizures, nausea, depression, heart palpitations, vision problems, fatigue, irritability, muscle spasms, weight gain, anxiety attacks, insomnia, heart palpitations, breathing difficulties and joint pain.

In addition, there is a wealth of documented evidence that suggests aspartame can trigger or worsen the following chronic neurological illnesses: brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, mental retardation, lymphoma, birth defects, Fibromyalgia, hypoglycemia and diabetes.

Dr. Blaylock is convinced that aspartame and glutamate are responsible, at least in part, for the upsurge in Adult Attention-Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children in recent decades. He states that the blood-brain barrier, which normally protects the brain from toxins, is not fully developed in young children.

Dr. Blaylock states, “Clinically we know that many such children will significantly improve when taken off foods containing excitotoxins. It appears that several neurotransmitters are abnormally functioning in ADD, such as dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, histamine and acetylcholine. Almost a decade ago, it was found that feeding pregnant animals excitotoxins produced a form of learning difficulty similar to ADD. The offspring had normal simple learning but showed profound defects in complex learning. In a follow-up study of these offspring, it was found they had an 80% reduction in frontal lobe acetylcholine levels and a 50% reduction in norepinephrine. The latter plays a vital role in attention and ability to focus.”

Aspartame breaks down into three compounds in the body: aspartic acid which produces aspartate, the neurotransmitter; phenylalanine, an amino acid; methanol, also known as wood alcohol. Aspartate is the neurotransmitter which damages neurons in the brain.

Phenylalanine is an amino acid normally found in the brain. Excess levels of phenylalanine can cause serotonin levels to decrease leading to depression and other emotional disorders. Dr. Blaylock points out that an excess of this amino acid in the brain can cause schizophrenia or make one more susceptible to seizures.

Methanol/wood alcohol is a deadly poison. It is the poison that in the past caused skid row alcoholics to end up blind or dead. The absorption of methanol into the body is sped up considerably when free methanol is ingested. Free methanol is produced from methanol in aspartame when it is heated above 86 degree Fahrenheit (30 Centigrade). This happens frequently when an aspartame sweetened soda is stored in un-refrigerated warehouses. Much of this has been served to our troops in the Middle East.

An Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) assessment of methanol states that it “is considered a cumulative poison due to the low rate of excretion once it is absorbed. In the body, methanol is oxidized to formaldehyde and formic acid; both of these metabolites are toxic.” The EPA recommends a limit of consumption of 7.8 mg per day. A one liter aspartame sweetened beverage contains about 56 mg of methanol. Heavy users of these products consume as much as 250 mg daily or 32 times the EPA limit.

Furthermore, it has been conclusively shown that diet drinks do not promote weight loss. Although there are no calories in the drink itself, aspartame promotes a craving for carbohydrates. When frequent users of diet drinks discontinued the products, they typically lost weight.

Many believe that aspartame should never have been allowed into food or beverage products. Anyone with any neurologically degenerative condition, especially tinnitus, should be very wary of consuming products containing aspartame. Beware of any food product that contains the words “lite,” “diet,” “low calorie,” or “no calorie.”

As stated in previous articles, managing chronic conditions such as tinnitus comes down to good common sense. In order to maintain good health and reduce effects of tinnitus and other neurological conditions it is extremely important to enjoy a healthful diet. We should strive to eat whole foods whenever possible, avoid prepackaged and processed foods including “soft drinks” and reduce intake of salt and high glycemic foods such as simple sugars and refined carbohydrates.

Part 2: Monosodium Glutamate

In the first section of this article we discussed the effects of Aspartame on the brain and degenerative neurological conditions. We looked at the many ways Aspartame affects brain function, destroys neurons and contributes to many neurological diseases such as MS, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and tinnitus.

In this sections we are going to look at a related substance, Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) found in many prepackaged food products. MSG breaks down into glutamate in the body. Glutamate, like aspartate, is an excitatory neuro-transmitter; it triggers the firing of neurons. When there is too much glutamate in the synapse between neurons, it activates the neurons into a continual firing mode until they exhaust their energy reserves and die. For this reason many researchers refer to these excitatory neurotransmitters as excitotoxins.

For thousands of years Japanese cooks have added a special ingredient to their recipes to magnify the desired taste of foods. This ingredient was made from a sea weed known as “sea tangle” or kombu. Yet it was only in the twentieth century that the active ingredient in kombu was isolated. This ingredient was Monosodium Glutamate.

Shortly after isolating the compound, the chemists who discovered MSG turned it into a worldwide multi-million dollar enterprise. They founded the Ajinomoto Company in Japan which today produces most of the world’s supply of MSG and a related taste-enhancing substance called “hydrolyzed vegetable protein,” which also contains large amounts of MSG.

After World War II, American food manufacturers discovered the flavor enhancing virtues of MSG and began adding it to processed foods, including baby food. It was thought at the time to be perfectly harmless and natural, since it was an amino acid. The amounts of MSG added to foods have doubled every decade since the 1940’s. By 2000, 350,000 metric tons of MSG were produced.

Glutamate is the primary villain in cochlear-synaptic tinnitus. This type of tinnitus develops when hair cells in the cochlea are damaged. This is caused primarily by exposure to loud noise or ototoxic drugs which damage the hair cells. When the hair cells are damaged, they release large amounts of glutamate which become toxic to the neuroreceptors in the auditory pathway. These receptors die off from the excess glutamate and tinnitus is the result.

Here is a brief overview of the process leading to neuron death. The electrical connections in the brain and auditory pathway, the synapses, are constantly stimulated or inhibited by neurotransmitters. Two of the main stimulating (excitatory) transmitters are glutamate and aspartate while the primary inhibitory transmitter is gamma-amino-butyric acid (GABA). If these neurotransmitters become out of balance, neurological problems develop.

When glutamate or aspartate surrounds the synapse, it opens the sodium channel in the neuron. The influx of sodium causes the nerve to fire. When exposed to excessive levels of excitotoxins, the sodium channel in the neuron is forced to remain open. Sodium continues to flow into the neuron causing it to continue firing. This continuous firing of the neuron causes a rapid buildup of free radicals and inflammatory products. These compounds attack the mitochondria, the energy producing elements in the core of the neuron cell. The mitochondria become depleted and the neuron withers and dies.

We know that people with tinnitus have an excess of neuronal firing in the auditory cortex and that by activating GABA receptors tinnitus can be reduced. This can be accomplished by the medication Neurontin which activates these receptors. An article on this subject can be viewed here.

Early warning signs of the dangers of MSG began to surface in the 1950’s. Two ophthalmologists decided to test MSG on infant mice in an effort to study an eye disease. When they later examined the eye tissues of the animals, they made a startling discovery. The MSG had destroyed all of the nerve cells in the inner layers of the animal’s retina, which are the visual receptor cells of the eye.

Some ten years later, John Olney, MD, a neuroscientist, repeated the experiment. He found that MSG was not only toxic to the retina, but also to the brain. When he examined the animals’ brains, he discovered that specialized cells in a critical area of the brain, the hypothalamus, were destroyed after a single dose of MSG.

Dr. Olney, one of the leading researchers in this area, informed the FDA of the very real dangers MSG posed in baby food but they refused to listen. Only after he testified before a Congressional committee did the food manufacturers agree to remove MSG from baby foods. As we shall soon see, that did not really happen.

In the 1960’s, the term “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome” appeared in the popular vocabulary. This syndrome occurred frequently in people who ate in Chinese restaurants, notorious for their heavy use of MSG. It is characterized by a set of symptoms which include sudden onset of headache, heartburn, palpitations, sweating, swelling, and flushing of the face. MSG was beginning to develop a poor reputation and many people were attempting to minimize exposure to this food additive.

FDA labeling restrictions state that MSG must be listed on a product label only when it is added in its free form. If it is combined with other food compounds, it does not have to be listed separately. This loophole in labeling requirements led to the development of “hydrolyzed vegetable protein”, sometimes referred to simply as “vegetable protein”, “plant protein” and even “natural flavoring”.

Hydrolyzed vegetable protein is manufactured from “junk” vegetables no longer fit for retail sale. The vegetables are boiled in sulfuric acid for several hours then neutralized using caustic soda. A brown sludge rises to the surface of the mixture. This is scraped off, dried and powdered, after which MSG is added, typically in the range of 40-60%. It is then added by the food industry to everything from canned tuna to baby food. This happens without any mention of MSG on the label.

Excitotoxins, such as MSG and Aspartame, have been linked to a whole group of degenerative brain diseases in children and adults, especially the very young and the elderly. These diseases include ADD and ADHD, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, ALS, (Lou Gehrig’s disease), as well as several more rare disorders of the nervous system. Tinnitus is a degenerative neurological condition that is affected by excitotoxins.

What all of these diseases have in common is a slow destruction of brain cells that are specifically sensitive to excitotoxin damage. Neurons that use glutamate for a transmitter are destroyed by high levels of glutamate, while neurons that use other transmitters are spared.

While there is little evidence that food-borne excitotoxins are the cause of these disorders, there is growing evidence that they can aggravate these conditions and that they may even precipitate them in sensitive individuals. Certainly the scientific evidence is far too strong to ignore the possibility that excitotoxic food additives may cause such conditions to appear sooner and to a more serious degree.

As we ended the article last month, we will state again: In order to maintain good health and reduce effects of tinnitus and other neurological conditions it is extremely important to enjoy a healthful diet. We should strive to eat whole foods, whenever possible, avoid prepackaged and processed foods including soft drinks and especially diet soda. We should reduce our intake of salt and high glycemic foods such as simple sugars and refined carbohydrates.

For more information on how to prevent or reduce neurological disease I highly recommend the book “Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills” by Russell Blaylock, MD. Dr. Blaylock is a board certified neurosurgeon with 21 years of experience and is a clinical assistant professor at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Next month we will discuss a number of dietary supplements that can be used to prevent neurological damage and help restore healthy brain function in those already afflicted. These supplements include Ginkgo biloba, zinc, Omega-3 fatty acids, Acetyl-L-Carnitine, Alpha Lipoic Acid, Coenzyme Q10 and N-Acetyl-Cysteine.

Additives that always contain MSG:

Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
Hydrolyzed Protein
Hydrolyzed Plant Protein
Plant Protein Extract
Sodium Caseinate
Calcium Caseinate
Yeast Extract
Textured Protein
Autolyzed Yeast
Hydrolyzed Oat Flour

Additives that frequently contain MSG:

Malt Extract
Malt Flavoring
Bouillon
Broth
Stock
Flavoring
Natural Flavoring
Natural Beef or Chicken Flavoring
Seasoning

Part 3: Solutions

In the last two sections we have discussed the excitatory neurotoxins aspartate and glutamate. These neurotoxins are responsible for exciting brain neurons to the point that they continuously fire until they become depleted and die. In doing so they induce or aggravate a vast array of neurologically degenerative conditions ranging from Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis to less life threatening but still severe cases of tinnitus, hearing loss, headache/migraine, memory loss, vertigo, seizures, nausea and depression.

Aspartate and glutamate are added as flavor enhancers in pre-packaged and processed foods. Aspartate is derived from Aspartame, the main ingredient in NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful and other sugar substitutes found in low calorie prepared foods and diet sodas.

Glutamate is the main constituent of monosodium glutamate or MSG. This flavor enhancer is also used in many prepared foods. Most of the products using this neurotoxin do not list it in the ingredients panel on the label. A loophole in the FDA labeling requirements allows this ingredient to be combined with others without disclosing which ingredients are used to make the finished compound.

So often it seems that those of us with tinnitus have to abstain from much of the food products we would otherwise enjoy in order not to aggravate our condition. I don’t like to be the constant naysayer; “Don’t drink this” or “Don’t eat that”. Therefore, I’m very happy to present this article about supplements we can use which have the potential to prevent neurological damage and, in many cases, restore some neuronal functionality that has been previously damaged.

In this modern world it is almost impossible to completely avoid all the substances which can cause neurological damage, hearing loss and tinnitus. We all need to adhere to an excellent diet and eat primarily whole foods, avoiding over-processed and pre-packaged foods as much as possible. But we can’t go “back to the farm” and when we eat in restaurants or are in a hurry for dinner, it is unavoidable that we will ingest some products that can aggravate tinnitus. The rest of this article is about how to mitigate the damage so we can enjoy ourselves without doing irreversible damage.

Russell Blaylock, MD, in his book Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills, points out that all excitatory neurotoxins stimulate enormous and overwhelming concentrations of free radicals within exposed neurons. In time, this results in the progressive death of these neurons and the onset of progressive weakness.

I’m going to talk a little about the components used in Arches Tinnitus Formulas before getting into other supplements that help protect and restore neuronal health.

Ginkgo and Zinc
The Ginkgo biloba extract and chelated zinc found in Arches Tinnitus Relief Formula® are both powerful antioxidants which scavenge free radicals and eliminate them from the body. Additionally, Ginkgo biloba is a neuro-protector and glutamate antagonist.

In her article ‘Ginkgo Biloba” (Life Extension Magazine, May, 2000), author Karin Granstrom Jordan, MD, states that, “A condition common to many chronic and acute neurological disorders is excitotoxicity-oversensitivity of neurons to the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate. A series of laboratory experiments (Kobayashi et al., 2000; Zhu et al., 1997; Oyama et al., 1993) suggests that Ginkgo extract can protect neurons from excitotoxicity, preventing glutamate-induced calcium influx leading to cell death. A recent study in mice (Wu et al., 1999) showed the protective effect of Ginkgo extract on mice injected with a neurotoxin known as MPTP. This neurotoxin brings about a close approximation of Parkinson's disease in humans, monkeys and mice. When the mice were pretreated with Ginkgo, the neurotoxicity of MPTP was prevented in a dose-dependent manner.”

A clinical study published in Cellular Molecular Biology in September 2002 states, “In rat cerebellar neuronal cultures, addition of EGb 761 (Ginkgo biloba extract) protected in a dose-dependent manner against glutamate-induced excitotoxic neuronal death. These results suggest that EGb 761 protects against glutamate-induced neuronal death by synergistic mechanisms involving anti-excitotoxicity, inhibition of free radical generation, scavenging of reactive oxygen species and regulation of mitochondrial gene expression.”

This is the first mention of the mitochondria in these articles and is very important in the understanding of what follows. Mitochondria are the energy factories of all cells, including neurons. This is where the fatty acids from foods are oxidized (burned) and transformed into energy. The energy produced for the work that cells must perform is the molecule ATP (adenosine triphosphate). The ATP is produced in the mitochondria from fatty acids. A typical animal cell will have on the order of 1000 to 2000 mitochondria. It is the mitochondria in the cells that is attacked by free radicals generated by neurotoxins. As the mitochondria die, the cells die. Mitochondrial death begins the process of neurological disease as well as many other human diseases and even aging itself.

Ginkgo biloba and zinc are very helpful for preventing mitochondrial death. This is only one of the mechanisms by which they are effective in reducing tinnitus. Ginkgo biloba also increases circulation, especially in the microcapillaries that feed the eyes, ears and brain. It enhances the absorption of oxygen and glucose (sugar) in the brain. It reduces LDL cholesterol, allowing more blood flow, and acts as a mild antidepressant. Many clinical studies have been conducted on Ginkgo biloba’s effectiveness for tinnitus. Some of the major studies can be seen here. Additionally, there are other supplements that have been shown in numerous clinical studies to arrest and even reverse mitochondrial degeneration and death.

ALC
Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALC) converts to the amino acid carnitine whose primary duty is to carry fatty acids from the surrounding cell structure into the mitochondria where they are oxidized to produce ATP energy. Increased ATP means more energy to fuel the vital life-sustaining processes of the body, which can help prevent the onset of a number of disease states and the aging process.

The acetyl group is released from the carnitine to produce the key brain neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter absolutely essential for memory and learning. Alzheimer’s disease is a direct response to the loss of acetylcholine in the brain.

ALC has been shown to reverse the loss of brain neurons associated with aging. It significantly improves learning and memory in aged animals and humans. Additionally, it has been shown to defend brain cells against lipid oxidation and increases cellular glutathione and Coenzyme Q10.

ALC also increases the inhibitory neurotransmitter, GABA, which protects neurons against excess stimulation. The effects of GABA have been discussed at length in a previous article that can be seen at Brain Receptors and Tinnitus.

ALA
Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) is sometimes referred to as a “miracle nutrient.” It is a universal antioxidant that has the fortunate property of being soluble in both water and fatty fluids in the body. This allows it access to all areas of the cells and it easily crosses the blood-brain barrier to infuse the brain. It appears to be able to regenerate other antioxidants such as vitamins C and E. ALA has shown dramatic effects in repairing hearing damage caused by antibiotics.

There is one unrelated but extremely important note on ALA that I should mention. It has shown the ability to enhance glucose transport into cells, without insulin. Normally glucose cannot enter a cell, except in the brain, unless insulin is present. What makes this especially important is that this could play a vital role in treating both forms of diabetes, Type 1 or juvenile onset, and Type II, adult onset.

A team of researchers in California fed elderly rats Acetyl-L-Carnitine for a period of seven weeks and then compared them to young rats. There was already evidence that supplementation with ALC could reverse the age-related decline in mitochondrial activity in rats, increase fatty acid oxidation and boost general metabolic activity. However, the down side to increased mitochondrial function is that more free radicals are produced when oxidation occurs. So the researchers decided to add the powerful antioxidant Alpha Lipoic Acid to the mix to see if they could get the best of both worlds; increased mitochondrial energy output with reduced mitochondrial damage.

The two-pronged punch to aging cells seemed to work, with the two supplements together producing better results than either one alone. After a month on the supplements, elderly (24 month old) and lethargic rats had more energy and did better on memory tests, while their mitochondria worked better. The decline in overall activity typical of aged rats was reversed to the level of young to middle-aged adult rates aged 7-10 months. The researchers likened this result to a group of 80 year old humans throwing away their walking sticks and starting to act 35 years younger.

It is important to note that the aging process in humans is much slower than in rats, so the seven week supplementation period used in the rat studies equates to around five years of supplementation in humans.

National tinnitus authority, Michael Seidman, MD conducted a clinical study titled “Biological activity of mitochondrial metabolites on aging and age-related hearing loss.” This study was published in the March, 2000 issue of the American Journal of Otology.

Dr. Seidman fed 21 rats, aged 24 months, either a placebo or Acetyl-L-Carnitine and Alpha Lipoic Acid for 6 weeks. He measured hearing thresholds both before and after the 6 week period. The results showed that the placebo group demonstrated an expected age-associated threshold deterioration of 3 to 7 dB in the 6 week study. The treated subjects experienced a delay in progression of hearing loss. He states, “Acetyl-L-Carnitine and Alpha Lipoic Acid reduce age-associated deterioration in auditory sensitivity and improve cochlear function. This effect appears to be related to the mitochondrial metabolite ability to protect and repair age-induced cochlear damage, thereby upregulating mitochondrial function and improving energy producing capabilities.”

This combination of supplements, ALC and ALA, appears to slow or reverse age related decline in the cellular structures of the body, prevent hearing loss and protect neurons against excitatory neurotoxins. The ALC increases the burning of food to produce energy while the ALA cleans out the free radicals produced by the oxidation. These are extremely remarkable discoveries all by themselves. But there is more.

CoQ10
Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is a powerful antioxidant that some studies show is 30 to 100 times more effective than vitamin E. The mitochondria of the cells are the richest sites in CoQ10. It plays a very important role in the production of energy from burned fuel. It can be burned itself to protect the cell from low oxygen during periods of reduced blood flow such as heart attacks and strokes.

CoQ10 protects muscle tissue during times of reduced blood flow and prevents us from dying immediately from heart attacks. It is so important that the Guide to Better Hearing, 2001, published by HealthCare Laboratories claims that “without CoQ10, human life quickly ends.”

Glutathione
Glutathione is the primary antioxidant within the inner ear. It is the first line of defense when excess glutamate is produced by damage to inner ear hair cells. Glutathione fights to neutralize this excess glutamate until it is finally overwhelmed and the hair cell dies. This is the beginning stage of hearing loss and tinnitus.

Wouldn’t it be fantastic if there was a product that combined all of these wonderful ingredients? Well, there is.

Michael Seidman, MD was granted a US patent on a combination of Acetyl-L-Carnitine, Alpha Lipoic Acid, Coenzyme Q10 and Glutathione. There are thee other patent applications under consideration for this product. The patent that is granted relates to its benefit with hearing loss. The other patent applications are for; 1 - Enhancement of mitochondrial function, 2 - Natural increase in energy production, and 3 - Positive support (when taken two/three times daily) on neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.

Body Language Vitamin Company, founded by Dr. Seidman, manufactures this product under the name Anti-Age/Energy Formula. Arches Tinnitus Formulas proudly offers this product which can be purchased from our website or toll free number, 800-486-1237.

This product has the ability to literally turn back the clock on many of the aging processes that lead to neurodegeneration and disease. It improves energy output, memory and learning, regulates sugar metabolism and mitigates the damage of excitatory neurotoxins. It should be used by everyone who has a commitment to good health and long life.

To view product details of the Anti-Age/Energy Formula and place orders, view the product details at http://www.tinnitusformula.com/detail.aspx?ID=11.