Your ears play a crucial role in your day-to-day life and neurological health. They help make you aware and communicate with others.
Keep reading to learn more about 6 things you may not know about hearing loss.
1. Hearing Loss Can Happen to Anyone
Hearing loss is often associated with older adults. Although it is more common in seniors, it can affect anyone at any age.
Age-related hearing loss usually occurs due to changes in the ear. Other factors contributing to age-related hearing loss include certain medications and conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, kidney disease, or heart disease.
2. Hearing Loss is Common
Hearing loss is quite prevalent. About 48 million Americans, age 12 and older, have some degree of hearing loss. Currently, it’s the third leading chronic health condition in the U.S., and cases are increasing rapidly.
3. You Shouldn’t Ignore These Symptoms of Hearing Loss
While sudden or severe hearing loss is easy to recognize, mild to moderate gradual hearing loss is often too subtle to notice. You could be developing hearing loss if you experience the following symptoms:
- You experience ear pain
- You tend to mishear what others say
- You think people are often mumbling
- You have tinnitus or ringing in your ears
- You experience dizziness or balance issues
- You read lips to understand what’s being said
- You frequently ask people to repeat themselves
- You can’t hear high-pitched sounds like birds chirping
- You feel as though there’s fluid or pressure in your ear
- You avoid some social settings because it’s too hard to hear
- People complain that you have the TV or radio volume too loud
- You have difficulty following conversations, particularly in a noisy environment like a restaurant
If you experience these symptoms, see your audiologist at Chicago ENT for a hearing assessment. If hearing loss is detected, they will provide the most appropriate treatment depending on the cause and severity of the condition.
4. Noise is a Leading Cause of Hearing Loss
The world has become a louder place. Noise pollution is now a significant problem in towns and cities.
Airports, construction activities, traffic, crowded sports venues and bars, concerts, power tools, and barking dogs have transformed most environments into noisy places. Other sounds, such as listening to music on your earbuds or headphones with the volume on high, using your blender, lawnmowers, and leaf blowers, also contribute to the noise levels in your environment, even if you think the sounds are not too loud.
When exposed to loud noise repeatedly, it can harm your hearing. The louder the sound, the faster it will destroy your hearing.
Loud noises can destroy the hair cells in the cochlea, resulting in hearing loss. Noise-induced hearing loss is typically gradual and painless.
Avoiding loud noises can protect your hearing and prevent noise-induced hearing loss.
5. If You Have Hearing Loss, Treatment is Critical
Like most medical conditions, early treatment of hearing loss leads to the best outcomes. It prevents long-term or permanent damage to your hearing.
Left untreated, hearing loss can lead to auditory deprivation. Auditory deprivation occurs when the brain has trouble understanding and processing information due to a lack of stimulation.
When fewer sound signals are transmitted to the brain, it starts to change how it works. This is called auditory deprivation.
The longer hearing loss goes untreated, the more likely your brain is to forget how to hear. That can make treating hearing loss much more difficult in the future.
Promptly addressing hearing loss can prevent auditory deprivation.
6. Annual Hearing Tests are Important
For many, hearing loss is so gradual and subtle that it often goes unnoticed. The ability to hear well tends to fade slowly by slowly, and by the time it’s realized, a person’s hearing is already considerably impacted.
That’s why scheduling yearly hearing exams for people at risk is crucial. These tests enable audiologists to detect changes in hearing early before they severely affect everyday life.
The earlier hearing loss is diagnosed through yearly exams, the sooner your audiologist at Chicago ENT can prevent or slow down further damage and preserve your hearing.
Safeguard Your Hearing
Don’t let hearing loss sneak up on you. An annual hearing exam at Chicago ENT can help catch and address hearing loss promptly, protecting your hearing.
Have you had your yearly hearing exam? If not, schedule your appointment today at one of Chicago ENT’s five convenient locations. It’s time to prioritize your hearing health.
