@diverdown1 Sodium, caffeine, alcohol and nicotine is the culprit of inflammation. That's all well and good. The ENT I went to put me on a low sodium of 1200mg per day. Very hard to do. Had to figure and measure. Problem with that is I lost weight I didn't need to and then my sodium levels are below normal now. Didn't make a difference for me. Don't smoke and not drinking any alcohol. I don't think anyone knows, they are just guessing. If all this is suppose to be avoided, then why can't they figure it out?? It's not the ears, it's the brain.