If you’re not treating your symptoms correctly, hearing loss can put you in the hospital. You might think that this is a bit of an exaggeration. Most people think of hearing loss as an inconvenience that makes it tough to hear the TV or what somebody is saying at worst.
But current research is causing alarm about the long-term health impacts of neglected hearing loss.
What Does Hearing Loss Have to do With Your Health?
Hearing loss doesn’t, at first sight, seem as if it has very much of a link to other health concerns. But research conducted by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health reveals that over time, visits to the hospital can increase by as much as 50% for somebody with neglected hearing loss. The danger of serious health issues rises the longer hearing loss goes untreated.
That seems like a strange discovery: what does hearing have to do with your overall health? That question can have a complicated answer.
The Connection Between Mental Health And Hearing
Here are a number of the health problems linked to hearing loss:
- Memory can start to fail. In fact, your odds of developing dementia is twice as high with neglected hearing loss.
- Higher instance of anxiety and depression. Basically, the chance of anxiety and depression rises with hearing loss and that will bring about health issues both physical and mental.
- Balance problems. Hearing loss can make it more difficult to keep your balance and keep your situational awareness.
Hearing Aids Really Help
There’s some good news though. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School research suggests that up to 75% of the mental decline associated with hearing loss can be halted by one easy solution: wearing a hearing aid.
Wearing a hearing aid has a profound impact on eliminating the risks associated with neglected hearing loss. According to the research, individuals who wore hearing aids for only two weeks saw:
- Improvements in brain function.
- Improvements in awareness and balance.
- Traumatic brain injury reductions.
The team from Johns Hopkins examined data from 77,000 patients collected over around two decades. And a critical part of preserving your health lies in safeguarding your hearing which is a surprising outcome. Being sick usually costs money, so taking care of your hearing also protects your financial well being.
Preserving Your Hearing And Your Health
Hearing loss is not exclusive to getting older but it is a part of it. Hearing loss can occur at any age because of occupational hazards, accidents, or diseases.
However, it’s important to acknowledge any hearing loss you may be noticing. Otherwise, your health could be negatively impacted.
