Acouphenol
Here we look at the claims for Acouphenol.
Treatment details
Type
Branded dietary supplement
Safety
Evidence of harm
Efficacy
Evidence that it is not effective
Recommended?
No
The makers claim
Acouphenol will “act synergistically on peripheral blood microcirculation. Thus reprogrammed your cells very quickly no longer send a signal (no more noise if you prefer) to the brain.”[1]
What is the treatment?
Acouphenol is a capsule which you take twice a day[2].
The supplement claims to contain[2]:
Griffonia; Cimicifuga (black cohosh); Ginkgo biloba; magnesium; melatonin.
What are the downsides of this treatment?
Potential side effects from constituents.[3-5]
Cost – this supplement currently is on sale for £49.99 for one month’s supply excluding shipping.[6]
Has there been research into this treatment?
There have been no papers published on Acouphenol as a supplement, but there have been a number published on its component parts. Some of these relate to tinnitus.
What does the research say?
There is evidence that Ginkgo biloba is not effective for tinnitus[7],[8]. There is no evidence that any of the other components of this supplement are effective for treating tinnitus[3-5],[9], with the exception of magnesium[10].
Although some of the components are thought of as safe, black cohosh can affect liver function[4], and Ginkgo biloba and melatonin can interact negatively with other medication you may be taking[5],[9].
Although independent evidence is limited, what there is does not show that the components of this supplement are effective for tinnitus and that there may be risks involved in taking this supplement. We would suggest you talk to your GP before taking any new medication or supplement.
“Dietary supplements should not be recommended to treat tinnitus.”[11]
Comments
Currently, it appears that vendors of Acouphenol have largely withdrawn from the market.
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Give what you canAll online references accessed 26 October 2022 unless noted.
1. Institut Actiscience. Ringing in the ears? Don’t suffer anymore. www.acouphenol.fr/acouphenol-accueil/
[accessed via web.archive.org – originally accessed 13 November 2019][translated from the French via Google]
2. Institut Actiscience. Stay stop to noises in the ears. www.acouphenol.fr/acouphenol-commande-en-ligne/
[accessed via web.archive.org – originally
accessed 13 November 2019][translated from the French via Google]
3. The Drugsite Trust. 5-Hydroxytryptophan. www.drugs.com/npc/5-hydroxytryptophan.html
4. National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Black Cohosh Fact Sheet for Professionals. ods.
od.nih.gov/factsheets/BlackCohosh-
HealthProfessional/
5. Drugsite Trust. Ginkgo biloba. Available
from https://www.drugs.com/cdi/ginkgo-biloba.html
6. Home Shopping Selections.
Acouphenol. www.hssuk.co.uk/acouphenol.html
7. Hilton MP, Zimmermann EF, Hunt WT.
Ginkgo biloba for tinnitus. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (2013), Issue 3. Art. No.: CD003852. doi:
10.1002/14651858.CD003852.pub3.
8. Kramer F, Ortigoza Á. Ginkgo biloba for the treatment of tinnitus.
Medwave. (2018) Oct 17;18(6):e7295.
English, Spanish. doi: 10.5867/
medwave.2018.06.7294. Erratum in:
Medwave. (2018) Nov 13;18(7):e7337.
9. The Drugsite Trust. Melatonin. www.drugs.com/npp/melatonin.html
10. Cevette MJ, Barrs DM, Patel A, et al.
Phase 2 study examining magnesium-dependent tinnitus. International Tinnitus Journal. (2011);16(2):168-73
11. Coelho C, Tyler R et al. Survey on the Effectiveness of Dietary Supplements to Treat Tinnitus. American Journal of Audiology. (2016) 25(3): 184-205