You can wind up in the hospital if you don’t correctly treat your hearing loss symptoms. You may think that this is a bit of an exaggeration. We’re used to thinking of hearing loss as little more than a hassle – something that makes the news a bit harder to hear or, at worst, makes you unwittingly agree to something you didn’t mean.
But new research is ringing alarm bells about the long-term health impacts of neglected hearing loss.
How is Your Health Related to Hearing Loss?
Hearing loss doesn’t, at first glance, seem as if it has much of a connection to other health concerns. But research carried out by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health suggests that neglected hearing loss can result in a 50% increase in visits to the hospital over time. The chance of serious health problems goes up the longer hearing loss goes untreated.
That’s a puzzling finding: what does hearing have to do with your general health? That question can have a complicated answer.
The Connection Between Mental Health And Hearing
Here are a few of the health issues linked to hearing loss:
- An increase in depression and anxiety. Basically, the likelihood of anxiety and depression increases with hearing loss and that will lead to health problems both physical and mental.
- Memory can begin failing. In fact, your odds of developing dementia double with neglected hearing loss.
- Balance balance issues. Hearing loss can make it more difficult to keep your balance and maintain situational focus.
Hearing Aids Really Help
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. Far from it. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School research suggests that up to 75% of the cognitive decline associated with hearing loss can be halted by one easy solution: using a hearing aid.
Wearing a hearing aid has a powerful impact on mitigating the risks linked to neglected hearing loss. The following improvements were noted in people who used hearing aids for as little as two weeks:
- Severe brain injury reductions.
- Brain function improvements.
- Awareness and balance improvements.
Over a period of around twenty years, Johns Hopkins collected and examined data from over 77,000 individuals. And the conclusion is surprisingly simple: safeguarding your hearing is essential to maintaining your health. Being sick usually costs money, so caring for your hearing also protects your financial well being.
Caring For Your Health And Your Hearing
Hearing loss is a perfectly common part of getting older, though it’s not exclusive to aging. Hearing loss can develop at any age as a result of accidents, occupational hazards, or diseases.
However or whenever you lose your hearing, it’s very important to address it. Your health could depend on it.