hearing examination
Hearing loss is common for many as we age. It affects one of eight people in the United States.
If left untreated, hearing loss can mean more than just struggling to listen to your family and friends or having to turn up the volume on your TV.
Hearing loss has long been connected to other health problems including depression, social isolation, risk of falling and even hospitalization. There’s also been extensive research linking hearing loss to diabetes and heart disease.
“Hearing loss can affect people of any age, from newborns to older adults,” says Madison Sudaj, AuD, an audiologist with OSF HealthCare. “Studies have found that two thirds of adults, 71 and older, suffer from some level of hearing loss.”
Dr. Sudaj adds that while anyone can be impacted, it’s most likely to affect older adults. Men are twice as likely to experience hearing loss compared to women, mostly due to certain careers like construction, music and lawn maintenance professionals.
Depression is a big problem for many people who are struggling with hearing. When you have difficulty understanding those around you, it can affect your daily lifestyle.
Dr. Sudaj says it’s common for people with hearing loss to avoid social gatherings because they can find it embarrassing when they can’t follow a simple conversation. They eventually stop going places, electing to stay home and avoid people.
“Depression and social isolation are an increased problem for people with hearing loss, because they can find it more difficult to follow a conversation in a group setting,” Dr. Sudaj explains. “They may hear one thing that was totally different than what was said, and then eventually start to disengage from conversations.”
The benefit of hearing aids
That’s when it might be time to think about hearing aids. Dr. Sudaj says the ideal candidate is a person with mild to severe hearing loss – someone who would not benefit from any medical intervention.
“Everybody that has hearing loss can benefit from hearing aids,” says Dr. Sudaj. “There’s a study that shows that if you’re missing any speech sounds, you benefit from hearing aids to hear sounds more clearly.”
Still, making peace with the fact you need help hearing isn’t always easy as people age.
“There is a stigma to hearing aids,” says Dr. Sudaj. “I think it comes from previously older generations who would wait until their hearing was really bad to start wearing hearing aids. Now younger generations find themselves more proactive in their health care and look into things sooner and start treatment sooner.”
Dr. Sudaj says hearing aids are far more advanced these days. Many devices fit within the ear and are hardly noticeable and no longer use disposable batteries, they’re rechargeable and provide better clarity between speech and background noise.
The best way to guard against hearing loss is to protect your hearing as much as possible. That includes using ear plugs or over-ear headphones when mowing the lawn, listening to fireworks or shooting firearms. Listening to sounds at a decibel level of 85 or higher for long or a repeated amount of time can cause hearing loss.
“You’re never too young to start thinking about your hearing health,” says Dr. Sudaj. “Get your hearing tested at a young age, get a baseline and be very mindful about hearing protection and noisy environments.”
For more information on audiology services, visit OSF HealthCare.
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