A miracle cure that can help extend your lifespan is something pretty much everyone would want. In fact, a brief internet search will probably return thousands of such miracle remedies (if not more), each promising to help you live longer thanks to one simple trick. Pretty much all of these so-called cures have no medical basis and are not endorsed by the healthcare community.
Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean that nothing you do can positively impact your lifespan. For example, eating a healthy diet (especially one low in sodium and saturated fats) or quitting smoking can dramatically impact your expected lifespan.
Utilizing hearing aids to manage hearing loss is also in this group. And a multidisciplinary publication that centers around healthy aging, called The Lancet Healthy Longevity, has recently released research that backs this up. So, can hearing aids help you have a longer life? There’s a strong likelihood that it will according to this study.
Is hearing loss a health risk?
Researchers have been aware of the connection between general wellness and hearing health for quite some time. For instance, it has been well established that untreated hearing loss can significantly raise your risk of dementia later in life.
These risks, however, are generally unknown by most individuals. They think about hearing loss as an isolated inconvenience, something that only impacts one very specific facet of their life. But when neglected, hearing loss can pose greater health concerns than a simple inconvenience.
Is there a connection between hearing aids and longevity?
In the majority of cases, treatment for hearing loss involves wearing hearing aids as much as possible. In this context, do hearing aids reduce the risk of early death? According to this newest research, possibly. There is a 24% reduction in mortality risk for individuals with hearing loss who regularly use hearing aids, as revealed by this study. The participants in this study, in other words, who wore their hearing aids, tended to live longer.
The benefits of hearing aids
The study published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity isn’t necessarily definitive proof that hearing aids will help you have a longer life (although the study does strongly suggest a relationship). But we already have a large body of evidence about the many benefits of using hearing aids and this just adds to that body.
- From enjoying caring moments with your grandkids to taking part in a business dinner, everyday situations with friends, family, and colleagues will be simplified.
- It will be easier to function in social engagements. This will help your general well-being by reducing your feelings of social isolation.
- Wearing your hearing aids can help enhance cognition. Over time, your brain will be healthier and less fatigued from straining to hear.
- You may also be more aware of your surroundings. This can help prevent accidents, injuries, and mishaps.
Whenever you wear your hearing aids, you will feel these improvements to your life. For these reasons alone, hearing aids are an important part of managing your hearing loss.
Your overall health and well-being rely heavily on healthy hearing
The more we discover about the relationships between hearing loss and the rest of your body, the more scientists have come to understand that your hearing is an exceedingly significant part of your total health and wellness. If you have hearing loss, getting diagnosed and using hearing aids can significantly diminish your early mortality risks.
If you suspect that you may have some level of hearing loss, it’s time to give us a call for a consultation.