Ginkgo Biloba

Nope. No. And not at all.

 

This may have already been asked, but does anyone know if gingko helps for Glue Ear? I've had tinnitus for 5 months from glue ear, I was recommended by a homeopath from Israel to take gingko (who says he has had a lot of success treating people with gingko for glue ear) just wondering if anyone has benefitted from it or if they have heard of anyone that has, must be glue ear related as from what I've read it does not help for noise induced T

 

Ginkgold, for 1 week, 60mg

Day 6, 7 .... noticed T increase notably, while also experiencing hot fingers, toes, ears, etc, and increased pressure behind ears. Stopped taking it, and T returned to baseline after 1-2 days.

Going to say, Fail (for me)

 

Even though some reviews found ginkgo ineffective, this might not be the case

"In all identifed and retrieved studies using the standardized Ginkgo biloba extract, EGb 761®, this specic preparation was found to be superior to placebo in the treatment of tinnitus."
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3157487/

"The question whether Ginkgo extracts are beneficial for human tinnitus sufferers is still discussed controversial. Eight clinical studies including a total of 1199 patients, using the extract EGb 761® demonstrated a
positive effect in favor of active treatment [36]. That systematic review included studies with patients suffering from long-lasting tinnitus over several years, as well as tinnitus as a symptom in patients with dementia. EGb 761® is an approved medication for tinnitus in Germany and many other countries world-wide. However, such a positive effect could not be demonstrated using other Ginkgo extracts [37]."
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4912078/

So if anyone's gonna try ginkgo, I think it's better to try egb 761. In North America, it's only available by nature's way. It'll say "GinkgoldTM Egb761 is a registered trademark of Schwabe"

http://www.natureswaycanada.ca/Product-Catalog/Ginkgold

 

I tried EGB761. If anything it made my T louder; but results may vary. Its quite a bit more expensive too.

 

Ginkgo is pretty harmless (compared to other sh*t we take for tinnitus).
A week is probably not enough to see any actual result, positive or negative.
I'd test for a couple of months, unless you get very intense side effects. One bottle of a good quality brand usually contains 60 items, so there's not much to lose. Only some cash and a little bit of hope - just like any other T treatment.

 

I disagree, and I know that's what others have said, BUT the sensation was very notable. Warm toes, ears, fingers, etc, and a pressure behind the ears, and a raised T level. I wasn't imagining it. As soon as I stopped, 24 hours later things started feeling a lot better.

 

I have a bottle of ginkgo that has been sitting in my cupboard for weeks. I'm afraid to take it. This T has made me afraid of taking almost anything.

When I went to a t support group there was a doctor there basically dispelling ANY sort of T remedies except for TRT type training and habituation. He did say however that the blood thinners did have success in studies although he doesn't recommend them because many elderly people have T and the risk of them falling and bleeding to death outweighs the positive effects on T.

Has anyone tried ginkgo and had any weird side effects?

 

I have been taking Gingko periodically over the years. Some people have reported it helped to lower their tinnitus while others have said it made no difference. There have been studies carried out by various organisations to check its effectiveness at reducing tinnitus or whether it is purely a placebo effect by individuals that say it works.

It is said to increase blood circulation to the extremities of the body: feet, hands and head, including the auditory pathways. I cannot say for certain whether it has helped lower my tinnitus but I believe it has improved my hearing and for this reason I continue taking it. Taken as a tincture (liquid) is considered to be the best as it enters the blood stream quicker. Some call it the memory tree as studies have suggested that it may help Alzheimer disease and improve thinking and learning.

I used to get nose bleeds, which could have been due to thinning of the blood. However, I haven't had one for some time now.
Michael

 

Hi Michael

Where do you get yours in the UK? Is it the pure strength stuff people have mentioned on here?
Can I take it with Citalopram?

@Marie79 - ditto. In the middle of a painful skin condition all over my face, left it late to get antibiotics and paying for it now...

Thanks

 

try tea tree oil. I was never a big fan of all natural remedies but I got an ear infection a few months after the one that gave me T and I was so freaked out about putting ANYTHING in my ear from the pharmacy (since I"m not 100% sure if the drops they gave me for my initial infection gave me T). I tried tea tree oil and garlic and it worked great! I was just looking it up last night for hubbys ear infection and I read that it helps with skin infections as well.

 

The Gingko biloba that I take @Candy is considered one of the best but whether this is true I don't know. The brand is Avogel and it is available in 50mls and 100mls bottles. It can be bought from Holland & Barrett but I have only ever seen the 50mls size in stock there which cost around £12. The 100mls is £18 or more at some outlets. I get my 100mls bottle from Amazon for £13.86 which is a bargin and have been doing that for some time. The dosage is: 15 drops 3x a day in a little water. I see no reason why it can't be taken with Citalopram but best check with your Dr to make sure.

Gingko biloba like other herbal medicines, St John's Wort for example, need time to build up in the body to reach full effect. Usually two to three months.
Michael

 

Thanks guys...

 

are you sure ginko takes months to work? I thought it generally has an immediate effect (well upon digestion/absorption) of increasing bloodflow to the peripheral extremities and such. I havent seen that it has long term effects like tonic herbs do?

 

@SilverSpiral I have been told by more than one pharmacist/herbalist, that herbal medicines take time to build up in the body as they deal with the root problem. Typically 2 to 3 months to reach full effect. I was told they are not fast reacting as prescription drugs.
Michael

 

As a general statement that has truth to it, but it's important to realize that in both herbal medicines and prescription medicines, there are ones that work instantly and ones that take months to work. For instance, SSRIs are well known to take months to reach full effect (the efficacy of ssris in general is another issue though...) , whereas eating some coffee beans, or taking a high potency B complex vitamin, or ingesting cannabis, will have fairly immediate effects. (not comparing those to ssri's just using the example of the prescription med i can think of that takes longest to work, versus the fastest acting "herbal ones")

Taking vitamin C has some immediate effects on the immune system, but if you were taking it to cure scurvy, it would take a while for it to actually treat that condition.

Tonic mushrooms like Reishi and Chaga have both short term effects, and long term effects.

Holy Basil (Tulsi) is another tonic herb, that i find has immediate effects, but some suppliers say to take it for months to feel full effects, but thats where I start to question the validity of that claim.,

I have noticed in some cases that I've gotten the impression that herbal suppliers may use the "this takes 3-6 months to work"..."yeah that does too" may be used to sell more product...

 

Thank you so much for the information SilverSpiral for I have learnt something.
All the best
Michael

 

No problem, I also edited my post to clear things up and give more personal experience I have. I of course have no expertise on this information, just my personal experience and viewpoints based on online research/reading books.

Speaking on Ginkgo Biloba, again, we don't know how, or even if it helps tinnitus for many people. In my experience, of taking it for I think 8 weeks, I havent noticed much at all. But even if it does work, without knowing HOW it works its hard to know whether or not its a long term or short term thing.

Like what if it simply reduces the perceived sound of tinnitus for some, by increasing bloodflow to the ear (in others this may cause an increase in the sound) so these people would likely experience this effect as long as they took it, and the effect may be immediate.

If it actually heals the neurons, or hair cells, or whatever in the ear, then it may very well be a long term thing, but I'm not able to find any hard writing on the effect ginkgo biloba has on tinnitus.

EDIT: I'm still taking Ginkgo Biloba twice a day and hoping for a miracle though!

 

Once again thanks for the information. When I first got tinnitus many moons ago ENT doctors advised me to take Ginkgo Biloba. I believe it's improved my hearing that's why I continue with it and if it helps my tinnitus then I consider it a bonus.
Please keep up the reading as the advice you have given is helpful.
Michael

 

Michael,

In some other threads, you've said your tinnitus can be nearly silent at times.

Could you think back a bit... was it always this way after your sound exposure, or has it improved since? Could it possibly be attributable to ginkgo?

 

@Blujay
HI Blujay. Before 2008 my tinnitus was very low and at times I hardly noticed it. After the noise exposure in 2008 my tinnitus ranged from: silent, mild, moderate, severe and very severe. I no longer reaches very severe levels and I continue to take Gingko Biloba in tincture form the brand Avogel. I feel the Gingko has improved my hearing and tinnitus.
Michael

 

I've been taking high amounts of high grade standardized Ginkgo Biloba, and have noticed no positive effects, if anything, after taking it I notice a spike, which I view as possibly positive, as it may indicate that increase circulation and nutrients are reaching the middle ear. Yet you have been taking Gingko and believe it has improved your hearing and tinnitus specifically.

However you have also taken 2 long rounds of TRT, and feel that has improved your tinnitus.

How much improvement do you specifically attribute to the Ginkgo Biloba.


I am taking 2x
120 mg
(Ginkgo biloba) (leaf) (Standardized to contain 24% Ginkgo Flavone Glycosides [28.8 mg] and 6% Terpene lactones [7.2 mg]) 120 mg

It is my understanding that this standardized form of Ginkgo is the same as the infamous "Tebonin".

 

Anyone post me a link to this Ginko or whatever you call it,a link to where I can order some of high quality?

Cheers.

 

At the moment I'm currently taking
-1 x 600mg NAC
-1 x 600mg B-Complex(Pharmaton)
-1 x Vit B12
-1 x Magnesium Citrate

Is all this safe to take together?

 

Definitely probably. Without knowing the nature of your b-complex (since you can overdose in certain b vitamins, I think b-6 is the one most dangerous of overdose, ironically of course, b-6 is one of the ones most heralded for tinnitus recovery, so what are you gonna do in that case, take your chances I guess). The B-12 supplement in addition to the b complex may be redundant depending on the dose present in the b-complex, and they do caution against using several thousand IUs of b-12 without doctor diagnosed deficiency, but generally you just piss out the excess. In people with B12 deficiency they will inject 10s of thousand IUs at once, since b12 gets stored in the liver. Your supplement intake is less than many "healthy" people without "conditions" take daily, though the whole health supplement market and efficacy is a debate in itself. Magnesium supplement is fine, judging by that you say "1x" magnesium is pretty safe its probably well under a gram, and you'd get very chronic diahrea with excess magnesium long before you had to worry about damaging your kidneys with it.

 

Do a "Buy" search for EGB 761 (most often marketed under the names Tebonin or Ginkgold).

This is the standardized Ginko Biloba often used in the more careful scientific studies.

 

How long have you been taking it?

 

I'm not sure to be honest, but at least 3 months. I'm quite sure the stuff I have is the same standardization as Tebonin. Try to find out what "Ginkgold" and "EGB 761" are. I am quite sure they are just proprietary labels for the same standardization of gingo biloba.
(Standardized to contain 24% Ginkgo Flavone Glycosides [28.8 mg] and 6% Terpene lactones [7.2 mg])
at 120mg per capsule of said standardization, it should be quite sufficient.

It's likely all these sources get their standardized ginkgo from the same major distributor. It's worth noting that last I checked Tebonin's website doesn't actually list the nature of their Ginkgo specifically on their site, in regards to terpenes and flavone glycosides. They really seem to be pushing their own brand name without much data to back it up.

 

Ginkgo 6000 extract from LAMBERTS. This is what I take for about a year and a half now non stop.
Do that and be patient. It takes a lot of time.

 

If anything I also feel that Gingko spikes my T.