If you’re not managing your symptoms properly, hearing loss can put you in the hospital. You may think that this is somewhat of an exaggeration. We’re used to thinking of hearing loss as not much more than an inconvenience – something that makes the news a little more difficult to hear or, at worst, makes you unknowingly agree to something you didn’t mean.
But the long-term health effects of untreated hearing loss is beginning to get serious attention from researchers.
What Does Hearing Loss Have to do With Your Health?
Hearing loss doesn’t, at first sight, seem as if it has much of a relationship with other health concerns. But research carried out by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health indicates that over time, visits to the hospital can increase by up to 50% for someone with untreated hearing loss. The risk of serious health issues goes up the longer hearing loss goes untreated.
That’s a curious finding: how is your total state of health linked to your ability to hear? The answer is challenging.
Hearing Health And Mental Health
Untreated hearing loss has been connected with numerous other health problems, including:
- Higher instance of depression and anxiety. Basically, the likelihood of depression and anxiety increases with hearing loss and that will bring about health problems both physical and mental.
- Balance balance issues. Hearing loss can make it more difficult to keep your balance and maintain situational focus.
- Memory can begin failing. In fact, your odds of getting dementia double with neglected hearing loss.
Hearing Aids Really Help
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. Far from it. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School research indicates that up to 75% of the cognitive decline connected to hearing loss can be stopped in its tracks by one simple solution: using a hearing aid.
The health risks linked to hearing loss can be seriously mitigated by using hearing aids. The following improvements were noted in people who used hearing aids for as little as two weeks:
- Traumatic brain injury reductions.
- Balance and awareness improvements.
- Improvements in brain function.
The team from Johns Hopkins looked at data from 77,000 patients accumulated over roughly twenty years. And what they found is surprisingly simple: protecting your hearing is crucial to maintaining your health. Taking care of your hearing health also benefits your financial well-being, because being sick can be expensive.
Caring For Your Health And Your Hearing
Hearing loss is not exclusive to getting older but it is a part of it. Due to accidents, occupational hazards, and disease, hearing loss can happen regardless of how old you are.
However, it’s essential to address any hearing loss you might be experiencing. Your health could depend on it.