Public opinion about cannabinoids and marijuana have changed incredibly in the last several decades. THC, cannabinoids, and even marijuana are legal for medical use in most states. Far fewer states have legalized marijuana for recreational applications, but even that would have been unimaginable even just a decade ago.

A group of substances derived from the cannabis plant (the marijuana plant, basically) are referred to as cannabinoids. Notwithstanding their recent decriminalization in some states, we’re still discovering new things about cannabinoids. Even though we now are beginning to understand the numerous medical advantages of these compounds, it has been acknowledged for some time that tinnitus could be triggered by cannabinoids.

Numerous Forms of Cannabinoids

There are lots of varieties of cannabinoids that can be used now. It’s not just pot (or Mary Jane, or grass… look, let’s just all agree upfront that marijuana has many nicknames and move on). These days, THC and cannabinoids can be obtained in pill form, as lotions, as inhaled mists, and more.

The types of cannabinoids available will vary state by state, and many of those varieties are still officially illegal under federal law if the amount of THC is more than 0.3%. So it’s still normal for people to be very cautious about cannabinoids.

The issue is that we don’t yet know much concerning some of the lasting side effects or complications of cannabinoid usage. One example is the new information about how cannabinoids affect your hearing.

Cannabinoids And Your Hearing, Some New Research

Whatever you want to call it, cannabinoids have long been connected to helping a large number of medical conditions. Based on evidence that is anecdotally available, conditions including vertigo, nausea, seizures, and countless more seem to be improved by cannabinoids. So could cannabinoids assist with tinnitus? That’s what researchers resolved to find out.

Seems as if cannabinoids might actually cause tinnitus. According to the research, over 20% of study participants who used cannabinoid products reported hearing a ringing in their ears. And these participants had never had tinnitus symptoms before the study. Additionally, marijuana users were 20-times more likely to report having tinnitus symptoms after 24 hours.

Further research suggested that marijuana use could aggravate ear-ringing symptoms in individuals who already deal with tinnitus. So, it seems rather certain that cannabinoids and tinnitus aren’t really compatible.

How Cannabinoids Make Tinnitus Worse

There are a couple of tangible ways that cannabinoids can make your tinnitus experience worse. First, the incidents of tinnitus symptoms can become more frequent, you may experience the buzzing or ringing in your ears more often. Also, your struggles with tinnitus can get more overwhelming when you use cannabinoids. The discomfort from the ringing may become more intense or harder to just ignore.

The study also appears to reveal that cannabinoids can cause the development of initial tinnitus symptoms. To put it a different way: if you didn’t have tinnitus before, you may develop tinnitus after using cannabinoids.

It’s Still Not Clear What Causes Tinnitus

We understand there is a link between tinnitus and certain triggers but we’re still uncertain what the actual root causes are. It’s evident that cannabinoids can have an impact on the middle ear and symptoms of tinnitus. But what’s causing that impact is far less evident.

But we recognize that marijuana use, as opposed to other mood altering substances like alcohol, can cause tinnitus.

Of course, we will keep doing research. People will be enabled to make a smart choice as to which of the many forms of cannabinoid to choose as we gain better insight into their link to tinnitus.

The Miracle Cure Beware

Lately there has been a ton of hype about cannabinoids by marketers. Partly, that’s due to changing mindsets about cannabinoids themselves (and, to an extent, is also an indication of a desire to move away from opioids). But this new research clearly demonstrates that cannabinoids can and do create some negative consequence, particularly if you’re worried about your hearing.

You won’t be able to avoid all of the cannabinoid fanatics and evangelists out there, the marketing of cannabinoids has been especially aggressive.

But this new research certainly suggests a solid link between tinnitus and cannabinoids. So no matter how much advertising you see for CBD oils, if you’re worried about tinnitus, you should probably keep away from them. It’s worth being careful when the link between cannabinoids and tinnitus has been so firmly established.