You can wind up in the hospital if you don’t correctly treat your hearing loss symptoms. You might think that this is a bit of an exaggeration. Most individuals think of hearing loss as an inconvenience that makes it difficult to hear the TV or what somebody is saying at worst.
But the long-term health effects of neglected hearing loss is beginning to get serious attention from researchers.
What Does Hearing Loss Have to do With Your Health?
At first glance, hearing loss doesn’t appear to have much to do with other health concerns. But research conducted by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health suggests that over time, visits to the hospital can increase by as much as 50% for somebody with untreated hearing loss. The risk of severe health issues rises the longer hearing loss remains untreated.
That seems like a strange finding: how is your total state of health related to your ability to hear? That question can have a complicated answer.
Hearing Health And Mental Health
Untreated hearing loss has been connected with numerous other health concerns, like:
- An increase in anxiety and depression. Simply put, untreated hearing loss can increase depression and anxiety, which in turn can have a strong negative effect on your physical body, not to mention your mental health.
- You begin to lose your memory. As a matter of fact, your odds of getting dementia is twice as high with neglected hearing loss.
- Balance problems. Hearing loss can make it more difficult to keep your balance and maintain situational awareness.
Hearing Aids Really Help
It’s not all gloom and doom, however. Far from it. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School research reveals that up to 75% of the mental decline connected to hearing loss can be stopped in its tracks by one simple solution: wearing a hearing aid.
Wearing a hearing aid has a powerful impact on eliminating the risks linked to untreated hearing loss. The following improvements were noted in individuals who wore hearing aids for as little as two weeks:
- Brain function improvements.
- Awareness and balance improvements.
- Reductions in traumatic brain injuries.
Over a period of about twenty years, Johns Hopkins collected and analyzed data from more than 77,000 people. And a critical part of preserving your health lies in safeguarding your hearing which is a staggering outcome. Taking care of your hearing health also benefits your financial well-being, because being sick can be expensive.
Preserving Your Hearing And Your Health
Hearing loss is not exclusive to the aging process but it is a part of it. Hearing loss can develop at any age due to accidents, occupational hazards, or diseases.
However or whenever you lose your hearing, it’s very important to have it checked. Otherwise, your health could be negatively impacted.