If you think that yours is triggered by the herpes virus, then looking into an anti viral might be worth it. Again, I don’t know if they would be a problem with blood thinners. Some have had positive results using them alone and some along with JOH. I am using both and am having very favorable results. Most importantly, do what works for you. Good luck.
Hello, I am have been prescribed betahistine and it helped relieve some of my syptoms. If I understand correctly, I should NOT take 2. or 3.? No advice is in your document, but since these mess with blood flow to your ears, I would essentially double up & could prove dangerous or counterproductive even. For patients taking Betahistine, what would your recommend? I want to say I have been diagnosed with this only 2 months ago & betahistine has started to remove my ear fullness, I have yet to have a full-on attack but its wayyy to early. I do believe in your herpes theory as I have had many cold sores in my time in my mouth & other issues that point towards herpes infections in my time. I've gone ahead and got the Lysine tablets, V-E AND V-C timed. Outside of your reg I was also going to take B-5 and B-6 to see if it had any effect, but I may hold off on these. I want to start with the Lysine tablets alone at first, get my body used to those then introduce the others. Any advice about how Betahistine fits into your picture appreciated, I'm from the UK so I was prescribed 16mg 3x a day.
I feel like my orginal post was a little misleading, I have had multiple full on vomiting attacks since march 2025, but only got diagnosed recently. Should we skip 2. and 3. if we are taking betahistine & its proving effective for the symptoms? That is my question, it maybe harmless to take them, or it maybe counter productive to most medcines, I don't know.
I have no experience or expertise regarding Betahistine as a treatment for Meniere's disease. It is seldom prescribed here in the US. I don't believe that its use with my regimen would cause any problems; I see no conflicts with its concurrent use. --John of Ohio
I have been using Serc with this regimen for over a decade. I have had no issues using them with each other. YMMV
deeply gratefull John - been using yr regime for nearly a year now and been free of attacks even minor ones. Just for the record, startet with 3000mg/day Lysin for three months and 1000mg daily thereafter.--- 250mg B3 20mgB1 a few weeks daily now 3X weekly--- 1000mg Bioflavonoids 400 mg Vit. C 200 mg Magnesium - also a considerable improvement in hearing, listening to music again after having given that up some 5 years ago.
Do you have to take it spread out through day my tabs are 2000mg so i just take one fasted a day along with virals
If that sequence give relief, continue. If not, take twice a day, with a long interval (eight hours or so). --John of Ohio
Thank you im actually going through a bad period atm 2 attacks a day or so but they are 3/10 compared to 10/10 when first started having them some years ago also on anti viral so am assuming the virus is fighting back, ill persist as the signs are encouraging and hopefuly put it back into remmison
Hi John, I just joined today and I'm looking for the "attachment" referred to re. your updated regimen but I'm not seeing an attachment. Can someone please help me locate it? Thank you!
In previous years I’ve posted several versions of my Meniere’s treatment regimen, involving a number of over the counter supplements. Today, I recommend just a single supplement, lysine. Lysine is a component of most dietary proteins and is a common and safe dietary substance. The body cannot make lysine but it is required to synthesize almost all proteins. In the replication of herpes viruses, which are the apparent cause of Meniere’s symptoms in about 85% of Meniere’s cases, lysine competes for arginine uptake in replicating herpes viruses. By substituting for arginine, lysine disrupts viral replication and activity, suppressing the herpes infection. It can therefore reduce Meniere’s symptoms and reduce or eliminate the chance of the disease moving to the second ear (going bilateral). L-Lysine VitaCost Lysine: https://www.vitacost.com/vitacost-l-lysine?ta=lysine&t=lysine Purpose: Reduce or stop the replication of herpes viruses that may be a cause of most Meniere’s cases, and to prevent the disease from affecting a second ear. Active Ingredient: The amino acid l-lysine. Known Side Effects: In the dosages recommended here, there are none. Dosage: It is important to consume enough lysine to stop or slow herpes virus replication. It appears that for herpes zoster (shingles) and herpes simplex (cold sores, et al.) infections, up to 3000mgs of lysine must be taken each day for control. A similar dosage would be advised for Meniere’s cases. Therefore, until Meniere’s symptoms significantly subside, take one 1000mg capsule three times a day, without food. Take at least 20 minutes before eating. If taken with food, lysine is not effective against herpes viruses. One 1000mg capsule taken immediately upon arising, at least 20 min before breakfast is a good daily start. Then, in mid-afternoon, at least 2 hr after lunch, take another 1000mg capsule. Finally, just before retiring, at least 2 hr after supper, take a final capsule. Therapeutic results usually don’t appear quickly. It can take up to several weeks, or even four, five, or even six months before the virus becomes suppressed and symptoms begin to subside. Be diligent and patient. When Meniere’s symptoms enduringly subside for several months, take a 1000mg maintenance dose each day for several weeks or several months. At the first sign of returning symptoms, go immediately to 3000mg again. For some, it has taken 5000mg of lysine through the day to bring relief. --John of Ohio
i just want to say thanks John, you have helped me and so many people. My menieres is not gone but has been minimised for over 1.5 years, the first glimmer of hope in 12 years. Thank you.
John of Ohio, I was diagnosed with Meniere's in 2017 and your regimen gave me hope in the darkest periods. I have kept taking most of your recommended supplements since then, including just 1000 mg of Llysine daily, plus Acyclovir and Triamterine as prescribed by my Otololaryngologist. I've been afraid to eliminate all the other supplements as attacks have waned over the years to once every 12-18 months. Just when I think I'm beyond the beast, I have another major attack. Do you now see any benefit or concern to continuing any or all of your recommended supplements? I would take snake oil if I thought it would ward off this demon of a disease! Thank you for continuing your involvement with this group. Your ideas provide a lot of support and hope when doctors don't have much to say except avoid salt, caffeine, and alcohol, and we who live with this disease know that is certainly not the cure.
Dianne, Because the regimen has giving you very good results --- except for the occasional outbreaks every 12 to 18 months --- I suggest you continue with everything. But two recommendations. First, be sure (as probably you are) to take the lysine without food; at least 20 minutes before eating, or 2 hours after a meal. If consumed with food, lysine's ability to suppress the herpes viruses that cause Meniere's symptoms is greatly reduced. Then, if you'd been attentive to taking the lysine as described, without food, try taking a second 1000mg dose each day. One dose in the morning, and later in late afternoon or in the evening, a second 1000mg dose. Try that for the next half-year and see if it works. --John of Ohio
I have found Lysine to be most effective if taken 20-30 minutes before meals. Taking it 2 hours after meals was much less effective. Also, I find it critical to avoid certain foods high in arginine. The top ones are dark chocolate, Chocolate powder (like that used on tiramisu), seeds (especially pumpkin seeds), seed oils, nuts, and oats. Avoid these like the plague or you'll be sorry.
This post confused me a little, what I mean is are you saying L-Lysine is only thing we required from the regime now to work? I still take Betahistamine, and it resolved the ear fullness and restored some of my hearing but I still get low-level dizziness, sometimes quite intense dizziness without vertigo (I wouldn't be able to walk out of my house during those). I plan to start the regime now, I wanted to wait 1 month on Betahistamine to see its effects without muddying the picture with the regime, plus I was still recovering from alot of vestibular damage to my balance after a 24 hour EMS level attack, now that I'm back on my feet I want to start but I'm confused as to what I should be taking/not be taking. Can you clarify, would you recommend L-Lysine alone or other stuff still (I don't mean without betahistmine I'm going to keep that up) Many thanks!
Earlier I had a grain bowl containing lots of the nuts you speak of here for dinner, 40 minutes after I had a very intense dizzy episode, which cleared up after 4 hours. Usally eating isn't doing this for me, only with specific meals so I'm going to start a food diary but I think its likely related to the arginine contents you speak of.
Continue with the betahistamine. It has given you some relief. You are welcome, then, to also, at the same time, to take everything listed in my regimen description. But the most effective element has been the lysine; for many or most, it, alone has given relief. (It appears that about 15 percent of Meniere's cases are not caused by a herpes virus infection; so the lysine doesn't work for them.) John of Ohio
Im only on my late 20's. My symptoms for Meniere's took a turn for the worst when I got a cold in December resulting in huge aural fullness and total hearing loss that ended up with in the ER following by a blood vomitting inducing attack, before that I had occasional 20 minute vertigo episodes though 2025 (first signs of the disease for me), maybe once every 2 months, but after I got a cold this beast took a whole new turn & since then I've been having 18-24 hour episodes (until I went on Betahistamine). Doctors and ENTs have been equally useless, I've had to request Betahistmine and Prochlorperazine myself. Can you imagine one doctor asking me if I had autism as a response! Truly astounding, I wish these doctors could experience what we experience, maybe then we'd get somewhere . I'm currently trying to get to a neurotologist, but I fear the only thing doctors can do is surgical options, and that really is a last resort for me. The symptom I'm hoping your regime can resolve is a low-level dizziness I often feel it comes and goes, I've started a food diary to see as it happens normally 1-2 hours after meals. Generally, my morning condition is perfect and it degrades as time goes on if something I ate didn't agree with me. Othertimes it seems completely random, depending on fatigue/sleep quality. What I've noticed is that Betahistamine is masking the syptoms like you put in your PDF, it isn't addressing anything and as a result, I fear if I get a cold again or I eat something that is helping build the virus in my inner ear the Betahistamine alone cannot handle it and you get a attack (less intense, but still completely life ruining in the long term) However I count my blessing this medicine had a fast and immediate impact on my syptoms and for that I should count my blessings. I'm going to take your full regime from the PDF, at the pace you describe (adding only 1 compoment weekly/biweekly) as I really need to see how it interacts with my Betahistmine. I'll update in this thread as the months/years go by now doubt.