Hearing loss is a pervasive medical condition people live with today. Impacting over 48 million people, nearly 1 in 6 people have some degree of hearing loss. A condition that reduces hearing capacity, hearing loss has multifaceted effects on everyday life. It can strain communication, relationships, social life, as well as increase health risks. Fortunately, effective treatment is available and provides life-changing benefits that transform the quality of life. Treating hearing loss is an important investment in your overall health and wellness.
Impact of Untreated Hearing Loss
Though hearing loss is pervasive, it is widely undertreated. It takes an average of 7 years for people to address symptoms. Untreated hearing loss can take a toll on everyday life by:
- Straining Communication: hearing loss makes it harder to hear and participate in conversations. People use different strategies to compensate including lip reading, asking others to repeat themselves, or even pretending to hear. This can lead to miscommunication, unpleasant interactions, and also strained relationships. People often report feeling unheard or ignored by their loved one with hearing loss. This can lead to distance and frustration in relationships.
- Income Loss: studies have shown that people with hearing loss can be more likely to be unemployed or have less income compared to people without hearing loss. This includes a study by the Better Hearing Institute that showed people with severe hearing loss were twice as likely to be unemployed as people without hearing loss and people who use hearing aids. This study also showed that hearing loss was associated with a loss in annual income that reached up to $30,000.
- Increasing Health Risks: extensive research shows that untreated hearing loss can increase several health risks. This includes cognitive decline and associated conditions like Alzheimer’s, falls and accidental injuries, as well as depressive symptoms. These conditions affect mobility, personality/behavior, contribute to increased health care costs etc.
Hearing is integral to how we navigate everyday life. So the effects of untreated hearing loss can take such a toll on health and quality of life.
Benefits of Treatment
Treating hearing loss offers countless life changing benefits that not only transform hearing, but all aspects of life. Major benefits include:
- Interpersonal Benefits: Treating hearing loss alleviates symptoms and maximizes one’s capacity to hear. This allows people to participate in conversations with greater comfort and ease. People are better able to fully engage with others which strengthens communication.
- Health Benefits: There are a number of ways that treating hearing loss improves overall health. Studies have shown that treatment strengthens cognitive functions which improves brain health, reducing the risk of decline. Treatment also allows people to ve more in tune with their environment, increasing spatial awareness and safety which decreases the risk of falls and accidental injuries. The interpersonal benefits also improve mental health and wellness, decreasing the risk of depressive symptoms.
- Financial Benefits: Decreased health risks as well as risk of hospital readmission (also associated with untreated symptoms), lowers healthcare costs. Other financial benefits include closing the income gap as well as unemployment by improving work performance and productivity.
These benefits strengthen daily wellness, happiness, and health. Treating hearing loss allows people to live active and full lives.
Prioritize Your Hearing Health Today
The first step towards treating hearing loss is having your hearing health evaluated. Conducted by a hearing healthcare specialist, hearing tests involve a noninvasive process. This process is painless and involves measuring hearing opacities in both ears. This surfaces any hearing loss as well as the degree of impairment in each ear. Once your hearing profile is established, treatment can be tailored to meet your specific hearing needs.
Hearing aids are the most common treatment for hearing loss. These electronic devices provide the ears and brain with ample support, making it easier to hear. Hearing aids alleviate symptoms and maximize a person’s hearing capacity. They are equipped with different technologies that deliver enhanced sound quality, allowing people to hear more clearly and easily. Today’s hearing aids are more varied and innovative than ever before. There is a wide range of technologies that support hearing in everyday environments.
Contact us to schedule an appointment for a hearing consultation. We look forward to helping you prioritize your hearing health.