Four ways hearing better can help you age better

We all want to stay healthy and happy as we age. Exercising and eating right are two obvious things we can do to help. But did you know hearing our best has a big impact, too? Here are four ways hearing your best can help you age your best.

1. Hearing your best helps keep you social

When we hear clearly and without limitations, it’s easier to be engaged, maintain connections, feel a part of conversations, and stay socially active. 

People who struggle hearing, on the other hand, often decide it’s easier to avoid social situations. They may turn down invitations, limit interactions, and can become socially withdrawn.

Especially now, during this pandemic, staying connected and engaged is critical to our well-being.

Did you know?
Research shows that people who enjoy social relationships are more likely to live longer than those who are isolated and lonely.1

2. Hearing your best helps keep you alert and in control

Our sense of hearing plays a huge role in how confident we are and how safe we feel when we’re out and about. When we hear clearly, our spatial awareness opens up and we’re able to distinguish and react to audible cues that warn us of safety issues.

People who can’t hear like they once could are more likely to miss warning cues, feel less confident in surroundings outside their home, and are more at risk of accidents and injuries.

Did you know?
Individuals with good hearing are 2X less likely to experience accidental injuries2 and 3X less likely to have a history of falling than those with hearing loss.3

3. Hearing your best can help keep you mentally sharp

Numerous studies have linked hearing loss to dementia4, a mental health challenge the World Health Organization predicts will triple by 20505.

Experts attribute the connection to the fact that hearing loss leads to social isolation (a known risk factor for dementia), that it accelerates brain shrinkage, and that it forces the brain to “steal” energy needed for memory and thinking.

Did you know?
An international commission on dementia prevention recently confirmed that treating hearing loss in midlife is the largest modifiable risk factor for the prevention of dementia.6

4. Hearing your best brings you joy

More than anything else, hearing our best helps keep us positive and vibrant. Whether it’s listening to the laughter of friends, the sound of a symphony, a child’s first words, ocean waves lapping, or a bird singing outside the window, hearing keeps us engaged, optimistic, and connected to the world around us.

Did you know?
According to the AARP, optimism and a positive outlook adds 7.5 years to our life and an 80 percent reduction in cardiovascular risk.7

It’s never too late to start protecting your hearing

Noise-induced hearing loss is one of the top two leading causes of hearing loss, affecting approximately 40 million Americans between the ages of 20 and 69, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Noise-induced hearing loss can happen suddenly, say if you’re exposed to a loud impulse sound like a gunshot or explosion. Or, it can happen gradually — caused by regularly listening to music too loud, working in noisy environments, or using things like leaf blowers, lawn mowers, motorcycles or power tools without wearing proper hearing protection.

But noise-induced hearing loss can also be prevented — by knowing what sounds are too loud (anything above 85 decibel) and either avoiding them, limiting your exposure or proximity to them, or wearing earplugs, ear muffs or other hearing protection when around loud noises.

Today’s hearing fact identifies some common dangerous sounds. The Starkey SoundCheck app is even better: it lets you measure the decibel level in any environment you find yourself. In real time, so you never have to guess. Be smart. Be safe. And protect your hearing.

If you have questions or concerns about your hearing, we can help. Call South Suburban Hearing Health Center today!

One in five with hearing loss feel lonely and it’s affecting their health

Loneliness has typically been thought of like most other human emotions — fleeting and virtually harmless. While short periods of loneliness may not have negative effects, prolonged loneliness is toxic and increases the risk of dying by 26%. In fact, loneliness is as harmful to your health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day and increases the risk of heart disease, dementia, depression, stroke, diabetes and cancer.

You may be wondering, how can loneliness lead to all of that? Let me break it down for you.

How loneliness affects our health

Like food and water, humans need social connection to thrive and survive. These connections create a sense of belonging and safety. When we’re deprived of these crucial relationships, because of social distancing, hearing loss or a number of other reasons, our sympathetic nervous system perceives a safety threat and starts to fire. It’s a completely reflexive reaction.

In response, the body begins making hormones like cortisol and epinephrine (also known as adrenalin), preparing to fight or flee. Over time, the persistent exposure to excess cortisol can wreak havoc on our health. A heightened heart rate and blood pressure increase the risk of heart disease; increased blood clotting factors increase the risk of stroke; higher levels of glucose increase the risk of diabetes; and not having an immune system that’s functioning properly increases our risk for cancer.

You get the point. Prolonged loneliness is not good for your health.

Unfortunately, many risk factors for loneliness are difficult or impossible to change or reverse including being older, being female, living in a rural area, having a low education level, or having poor health status.

Hearing loss is a treatable cause of loneliness

The good news is that a treatable cause of loneliness is hearing loss. And it makes sense. When hearing is a challenge, so is communicating and maintaining relationships with friends, family and caregivers. To avoid the social strain and discomfort of being unable to hear, many people withdraw from conversations and eventually retreat into a shell. In fact, one in five people with hearing loss report feeling lonely.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Thanks to industry-first technologies, hearing aids deliver superior sound, body and brain tracking, and a built-in personal assistant. They are designed to be inconspicuous, fitting in or behind the ear and reconnecting you to the world around you.

The science is becoming clearer every day: it is time to put hearing health at the forefront of overall wellness because it matters, and its effects are far-reaching.

If you’ve put off treating your hearing loss — or are the child or caregiver of someone who has — experience the difference better hearing can make. Click here, and we’ll help you schedule a consultation with one of our hearing care professionals today.

Lots of people who have hearing loss don’t admit they do

An interesting thing about hearing loss is that the person who has it is frequently the last to know — or at least late to admit it.

It’s others, usually, who notice it first: by a TV that’s played too loud, or because they’re constantly asked to repeat themselves or — in the case of a spouse — answer the question, “what did he just say?”

So today’s hearing fact is less surprising than it should be. In a study of people 60 or older, nearly half who were tested with mild hearing loss didn’t think they had any at all.

Hearing loss is, typically, gradual. It can take years for it to get to a point where the consequences are overt. But even mild hearing loss can negatively impact our quality of life and, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine, double our risk for dementia.

Our advice is to be aware of hearing loss and proactively seek help before it causes irreversible challenges.

Made for face masks

Face masks have unequivocally been a good thing when it comes to helping prevent the spread of COVID-19. But they present challenges when trying to communicate with others. Especially if you or the person you’re communicating with has hearing loss.

Face masks muffle speech and block important lip-reading cues. Both are key to understanding speech. Add in social distancing or group video chats — which have nothing to do with masks but plenty to do with speech audibility — and this pandemic has made it a lot harder to hear what your family, friends, colleagues, neighbors and the local grocery store cashier are saying.

Hearing aids can help

It should be no surprise, though, that hearing aids offset these challenges and can help make it easier to hear people who are wearing face masks. By their very nature, hearing aids amplify sound which, in many cases, is all it takes to hear what face-mask wearers are saying.

Our new hearing aids can help even more

New hearing aid technology has been engineered to go above and beyond simple sound amplification to specifically tackle the challenges created by face masks, social distancing and background noise.

Our Edge Mode technology — available only in our Livio Edge AI hearing aids — has been proven to be highly effective in resolving speech intelligibility issues caused by masks.

How? By putting the power of artificial intelligence (AI) at your fingertips.

A simple double tap of your hearing aids activates Edge Mode anytime you need it. Once activated, Edge Mode scans the acoustic environment you’re in, then instantly optimizes sound — taking masks, distance and background noise into consideration — to deliver enhanced speech audibility on demand.

Not only is Edge Mode great for masks, it's handy to have anytime you encounter a noisy or particularly challenging listening environment.

Our new Mask Mode, too, was specifically designed to make people who are wearing masks easier to hear. Mask Mode is a new custom memory in our Thrive app that offsets the loss of speech audibility due to face masks by boosting sound in the affected frequency regions. Mask Mode is available on select Livio hearing aid technology levels.

The ideal hearing aid for today

But if you really want the ideal hearing solution for these mask-wearing times, you’ll want our Livio Edge AI custom rechargeable hearing aids. Not only do they help make hearing easier — thanks to Edge Mode and our proprietary Hearing Reality Pro platform — but because they fit in your ears and not behind them, they won’t get tangled or pulled off when you’re wearing or removing your face mask.

And they’re the only wireless custom rechargeable hearing aids you can buy! 

Listen, 2020 has been plenty rough. Don't you think you owe it to yourself to make hearing easier?

Want to experience for yourself how hearing aids can help? Click here to contact South Suburban Hearing Health Center today!

The high cost of untreated hearing loss

Did you know that untreated hearing loss can result in higher healthcare costs over time? There are now many studies that prove it “pays” to have hearing loss treated — not only from a physical standpoint, but from a financial standpoint too!

Hearing loss has become a hot topic in the field of science and healthcare. There are well-established relationships between hearing loss and other health issues: heart disease, stroke, diabetes, falls and dementia to name a few. Now there is a proven relationship between untreated hearing loss and higher healthcare costs.

According to a new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, “older adults with untreated hearing loss have substantially higher total health care costs compared to those who don't have hearing loss — an average of 46 percent, totaling $22,434 per person over a decade.”

Another study, done by the University of South Carolina, found that those with diagnosed hearing loss had 33 percent higher health care costs than those without hearing loss.

Why untreated hearing loss can lead to higher healthcare costs

Researchers believe that there could be several reasons for these higher healthcare costs. The main reason is that, because those with hearing loss have trouble communicating, they are waiting longer to seek medical treatment. The longer a person waits to seek medical treatment, the more difficult it is to treat an illness.

Another reason might be that the hearing impaired person didn’t hear or interpret the treatment instructions correctly. This could delay the healing process and incur even more healthcare costs. 

These studies highlight just one of the reasons it is important to treat hearing loss in a timely manner. Don’t let your fear of the unknown keep you from seeking help for suspected hearing loss. As you can see, the stakes are much higher than you might have realized.

Not sure where to start? We can help. Click here to schedule a consultation as soon as you can.  

Photo by JD Mason on Unsplash

Top 5 Benefits to Wearing Hearing Aids

If you’re on the fence about hearing aids, you’re not alone. Hearing loss is a common health condition that affects nearly 50 million Americans according to research supported by the World Health Organization. But contrary to popular belief, hearing loss doesn’t just affect the elderly. A study by Johns Hopkins published in The Archives of Internal Medicine found that 1 in 5 Americans age 12 and older have hearing loss severe enough to adversely impact communication.

According to the American Academy of Audiology, hearing loss is the third most common health condition in the United States, following heart disease and arthritis. The Hearing Health Foundation estimates that the number of Americans living with hearing loss exceeds those living with Parkinson’s, Epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, and Diabetes combined. Yet, despite the prevalence of hearing loss, experts estimate that only 20 percent of those who need hearing aids actually wear them.

Hearing aids provide a number of clinically proven benefits for hearing aid wearers including improved communication and decreased listening effort. Best of all, hearing your best will help you stay connected to the important people in your life. So for those of you still on the fence, here are the top five benefits of correcting hearing loss with hearing aids.

1. Increased Earning Power

Did you know that wearing hearing aids can actually increase your earning power? Research by the Better Hearing Institute found that untreated hearing loss can reduce annual earnings by as much as $30,000. The study also found that correcting hearing loss with hearing aids was found to reduce the risk of decreased earnings by over 90 percent for people with mild hearing loss, and nearly 77 percent for those with moderate-to-severe hearing loss.

2. Slow Cognitive Decline

Several studies have linked untreated hearing loss to an increased risk of developing dementia and reduced cognitive functioning. The decline appears greatest for those who do not wear hearing aids to correct hearing loss. A study from the University of Pennsylvania found that reduced hearing loss can actually accelerate atrophy in the auditory areas of the brain making speech understanding more difficult. The good news is that researchers have found that hearing aids help decrease atrophy while increasing hearing ability. The exciting new research further supports that treating hearing loss with hearing aids may slow the cognitive decline associated with hearing loss.

3. Reduce Annoyance Related to Tinnitus

More than 50 million Americans experience tinnitus, a high pitched ringing or clicking noise in the ears. With rare exception, tinnitus is usually accompanied by hearing loss. Wearing professionally-fit hearing aids to correct hearing loss can reduce the annoyance of tinnitus for many with hearing loss. Some products such as the Z Series product include technology specifically designed to alleviate tinnitus. Wearing hearing aids to correct hearing loss has also been shown to reduce the stress and annoyance associated with tinnitus.

4. Hearing Aid Wearers Are Satisfied With Hearing Aid Performance

According to a study by the Better Hearing Institute, more than 91 percent of those who purchased hearing aids in the last year were satisfied with their purchase. Nearly 90 percent of current hearing aid wearers would recommend hearing aids to a friend with hearing loss.

5. Better Living

Finally, the Better Hearing Institute has found that people who wear hearing aids to correct their hearing loss enjoy a better quality of life than those who let hearing loss go untreated.

Ready to learn more about hearing aids? Contact South Suburban Hearing Health Center today!

What is Swimmer's Ear?

Summer is in full effect! And swimmer's ear is serious concern... What is it you may wonder? Swimmer’s ear is an infection found in the outer ear canal, the area that extends from the outer ear (pinna) to the eardrum (tympanic membrane). The medical term for swimmer’s ear is otitis externa. Swimmer’s ear occurs when moisture gets trapped in the outer ear space, creating the perfect breeding ground for bacterial growth, which can invade the skin of the ear canal.

Causes of swimmer’s ear

Swimmer’s ear is most often caused by moisture or debris retained in the ear canal from swimming, showering, bathing or other moist environments. Swimmer’s ear should be taken seriously, and should be treated to prevent any negative effects it may have on your hearing and to prevent further infection.Other factors that contribute to swimmer’s ear

• Exposure to excessive bacteria, often found in hot tubs or polluted water.

• Excessive cleaning of the ear canal with cotton swabs (or any other tool that can damage the skin)!

• Cuts or skin conditions in the ear canal (eczema, seborrhea, etc.) that create an opening for bacteria to penetrate the skin.

• Contact with chemicals such as hair spray or hair dye that migrate into the ear canal.

Symptoms of swimmer’s ear

Mild cases of swimmer’s ear will likely begin by itching and irritation in the ear canal and pain that worsens when you tug on the outer ear (pinna). The ear may feel swollen or blocked. A clear, odorless discharge may be present as well.Advanced cases of swimmer’s ear may involve:

• Fever

• Decreased hearing

• Intense pain that spreads to the neck, face or head

• Redness and/or swelling of the skin around the ear

• Drainage or discharge that has an odor

Swimmer’s ear is typically not considered to be a dangerous condition and can clear up quickly following treatment. However, if untreated, swimmer’s ear can become extremely painful and potentially dangerous, especially for those who are diabetic or have problems with their immune system, including the elderly.

Complications of swimmer’s ear

Left untreated, swimmer’s ear can lead to:

• Hearing loss

• Recurring ear infections (chronic otitis externa): Without treatment the infection can persist

• Bone and cartilage damage: Untreated infections can spread to the base of the skull, brain or cranial nerves. (Diabetics and the elderly are at higher risk for this sort of complication.)

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Swimmer’s ear treatment

Medical treatment is the standard course of treatment for swimmer’s ear.The physician will perform an otoscopic examination to confirm there is no eardrum perforation, which would allow moisture to invade the middle ear space. The physician may be able to easily clean the infected area to relieve irritation and pain. Antibiotic ear drops are necessary to clear the infection and will be prescribed by the physician. For a more advanced infection, oral antibiotics or pain medication may be prescribed as well. If the infection does not improve within 3-4 days, the physician may consider different medications.It is important to keep the infected ear(s) dry during the healing process.

How to help prevent swimmer’s ear

If you are prone to swimmer’s ear infections, it can be wise to take some preventative measures. These include:

• Dry the ears following water exposure, especially swimming. Tip your head to one side to let the water drain out, then repeat on the other side. Never use cotton swabs to dry the ear! A dry towel or tissue can be used as well.

• Keep water out of the ear. This may be accomplished by using a barrier such as earplugs. These can be found as over-the-counter products but are most effective when custom molded by a hearing professional for the patients’ ears.

• Maintain proper earwax hygiene. Earwax or cerumen plays an important role in protecting the outer ear canal. Too much or too little cerumen can be an issue. Improper ear cleaning methods such as cotton swabs or ear candling can lead to ear canal damage that can lead to infection.

• Maintain proper skin health. The skin in the ear canal plays a big role in prevention of swimmer’s ear. Dry, cracked skin (often the result of health conditions) can be an open invitation to infection.

• Protect your ears from chemicals. Keep chemicals from hair spray and dye out of the ear canal with cotton balls or earplugs.

• Consider ear drops. There are over-the-counter ear drops designed to help prevent swimmer’s ear. It is important that you DO NOT put anything in your ear canal if there is any risk of you having a perforation of the eardrum. Seeing a physician to verify the integrity of the eardrum is strongly advised.

 You can always contact South Suburban Hearing Health Center if you'd like to learn more!

Dementia and hearing loss are linked

Hearing loss, and how it impacts the brain as we age, has been the focus of numerous studies. More recently, especially, as medical professionals’ (and the public’s) interest in dementia has increased.

One such study, titled “Hearing loss and the risk of dementia in later life,” was published just last June in an issue of Maturitas. In it, scientists from medical institutions across Australia analyzed a variety of studies — including one of their own — and discovered that hearing impairment in midlife is associated with a 50 percent higher risk of developing dementia. (See our video summarizing why scientists think hearing loss increases the risk of the cognitive decline.)

The good news? Another recent study found that hearing loss is one of nine dementia risk factors you can modify (by treating it at midlife) which can “contribute to prevention or delay of dementia.”

If you were ever looking for a reason to stop ignoring your hearing loss, these studies should be pretty persuasive.

Not sure how to go about treating hearing loss? We can help. Start by consulting with us today! Contact South Suburban Hearing Health Center here.

Is hearing loss affecting your relationships?

If your birthday or wedding anniversary is in February, forgive me in advance for saying this — but there is little to look forward to this month. It’s after the holidays but before spring. And in many parts of the country, it may be the coldest month of the year.

Fortunately, it’s short.

Another saving grace? Valentines Day. February is a great month to focus on love, relationships and affairs of the heart — three things you would think have little to do with hearing or hearing loss. But you might be surprised to know they are very intertwined.

Hearing and communicating are key ingredients to strong and happy relationships. Survey after survey shows that people who treat their hearing loss acknowledge that getting hearing aids improved or had a positive effect on relationships with family and friends.

Take our short quiz to see if hearing loss is affecting your relationships.

Our hearing and our heart are connected physically, too.

Contact South Suburban Hearing Health Center to schedule a consultation today!

Hearing loss increases your odds of becoming socially isolated

Social isolation — especially as we age — increases the risk of numerous mental and physical health challenges, including depression, heart disease, abnormal immune systems, and even dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Social isolation is also a growing epidemic which, according to the former Surgeon General of the United States, is associated with a “reduction in lifespan similar to that caused by smoking 15 cigarettes a day.”One big reason people become socially isolated is because of hearing loss. Often, as hearing becomes challenging, people avoid social, business or transactional situations where interaction is key — and instead choose to withdraw and isolate themselves.Our new Livio AI hearing aid was designed specifically to help. Not only is it our best sounding and best performing hearing aid ever to help people hear and engage better, it’s also the first wearable device that helps you track how socially active you are.To learn more about the new Livio AI, call South Suburban Hearing Health Center today to set up an appointment! We can't wait to hear from you.

Can earwax cause hearing loss?

In short, yes, earwax can cause hearing loss. But it doesn’t occur as commonly as one might think. In fact, very few patients who are seen by hearing healthcare professionals have hearing loss that is literally due to excessive earwax (cerumen impaction).More likely, the patient has experienced a gradual decline in their hearing over time and the hearing loss has become enough that the patient is starting to have difficulty communicating with others.  It is when communication starts to become effected that people seek help.What, you might ask, causes cerumen impaction? Anything that affects the normal outward flow of ear wax may cause impaction, such as advanced age, narrow or abnormally shaped ear canals, use of a hearing aid, incorrect use of cotton swabs, or using needles, hair pins, or other objects to clean the ears. (PSA: Do not stick anything in your ear to clean it!)

Total earwax blockage is rare

What is important to know here is that soundwaves only need a tiny opening in the ear canal to reach the eardrum. So, unless the ear canal is plugged tightly with earwax, there shouldn’t be noticeable hearing loss. When cerumen impaction is severe enough to cause hearing loss, there will likely be other signs and symptoms noticed, such as dizziness, ear fullness (a feeling that something is plugging up your ear), itchiness or pain in the ears and/or ringing in the ears. Rarely does cerumen impaction occur without additional signs that “something is wrong.”The good news is that hearing loss caused by cerumen impaction is easily treated and setting up an appointment with a licensed hearing healthcare professional is easy and convenient. Contact South Suburban Hearing Health Center here!

Are earbuds safe to share?

On a recent flight, I looked around and noticed I was the only passenger who didn’t pack headphones. I had to ask the flight attendant for earbuds, as it seemed everyone else packed their own. I started to wonder if my fellow passengers brought their own earbuds along to avoid sharing or to avoid using the complimentary airline buds? And if most people are bringing their earbuds everywhere, just how clean are they, and can they be safely shared?Lugging our earbuds around with us means our headphones are exposed to many different surfaces, increasing the likelihood of picking up bacteria from our desks, our tray tables, even our bags.Not only do our earbuds come in contact with contaminated surfaces, studies have shown that simply using earbuds increases the bacteria in our ears 11 fold. That’s because wearing earbuds can trap moisture and heat in the ear canal, creating the perfect environment for bacteria to thrive.

Bacteria bad, earwax good

Lucky for us, our ears have protection against bacteria. It’s our earwax, and it’s often what you see on your earbuds after wearing them. Every ear has wax, or cerumen. Wax is harmless and actually helpful. Wax helps clean, protect and lubricate our ears. Without it, our ear canals would feel itchy and dry.The wax in our ears also helps keep dirt and debris away from our ear drum. Apocrine glands in the outer part of our ears produce wax. These glands are similar to the glands that make us sweat. And just like an increase in stress or fear can make us sweat more, an increase in stress has also been shown to make our ears produce more earwax!If your ears produce a lot of wax, you can use a cloth to wipe the outer ear canal or you can put a few drops of over-the-counter ear cleaning drops in your ears to soften and remove the wax. If your ears feel blocked or the wax seems to be affecting your hearing, talk to your doctor or hearing professional about removing it for you. Jaw movements from eating or talking also help move the wax out of our ears. Read here for more ear cleaning tips.

The odds of infection are slim, but still…!

Reports vary on whether sharing earbuds is safe. Business Insider tested 22 pairs of in-the-ear style earbuds at Columbia University’s microbiology lab. Most of the samples yielded results that researchers expected, testing positive for bacteria found on our skin, like staphylococcus. There was one surprise though: two of the samples tested positive for yeast. Yeast is a type of fungus that can cause infection, you can even get a yeast infection in your ears.Sharing earbuds can introduce new bacteria into your ears, doubling the microbial flora in our ears. And while most of the bacteria is harmless, and the odds of something bad happening are slim, the risk of developing middle ear infections, fungus, and swimmer’s ear does increase when you share earbuds. If there is a cut in your ear canal, sharing can also cause a skin infection.

(BYOE) Bring your own earbuds 

My advice would be to avoid sharing your earbuds. If you’re in a pinch and need to share, it’s best to disinfect your earbuds first with rubbing alcohol or a disinfecting spray. Use a dampened cotton ball to wipe off any visible waxy residue and any bacteria hiding there that you can’t see.You may also want to invest in disposable earbud covers if you have a friend, like me, who always forgets to bring their own.Call South Suburban Hearing Health Center if you have any other questions!