Tinnitus is the medical term for ringing sounds in your ears when no outside source is present. It affects one in five people, and may be caused or worsened by age-related hearing loss, earwax buildup, loud noise and various medical conditions. Tinnitus that occurs after eating may be influenced by your food choices.

Ringing in the ears, also known as tinnitus, has impacted at least 50 million people in the U.S., according to a report in the August 2010 issue of “American Journal of Medicine.

When you step off of the elliptical or you've finished a round of weight lifting, you may notice that you experience a ringing or high pitched sound in your ear.

Eating the right foods just might reduce your aggravating ringing in the ears to a mild annoyance. Tinnitus, or ear ringing, is not a disease. The high-pitched sound that serenades you is a symptom, and although it cannot be eliminated, it could be reduced by incorporating a few easy-to-find foods into your diet.

Caffeine may cause ringing in the ears, but symptoms will be temporary unless you have underlying conditions.

A sudden ringing in the ears, also referred to as tinnitus, is a symptom of a problem in the ear or the brain. Approximately 10 percent to 15 percent of the population experiences some type of ringing in the ears, according to the Merck Manuals.

Sharp pains that feel as though they are shooting through the ear can be caused by pressure in the sinuses and ear, or by an ear infection. Ringing sounds can also indicate infection or an ear trauma due to loud noise.

If you experience ringing, buzzing or clicking in your ear, or if you hear a whistling or hissing sound, you are not alone. Ringing in the ears -- sometimes referred to as tinnitus -- is common, according to MedlinePlus. It may affect one or both ears, and it may be constant or intermittent.

Ringing or other noises heard in the ears is a condition known as tinnitus. Most of the time, tinnitus develops as a result of damage to the ends of the nerves in the ears and is not curable.

An estimated 50 million Americans suffer from a chronic or recurrent ringing, roaring, whistling, hissing, clanging or shrieking sound in their ears, according to How Stuff Works.