That loss of hearing can impact your brain has been confirmed in several studies. (Just have a look at some of our recent blog posts.) Hearing Aids, fortunately, have been proven to be able to help you regain some of that cognitive capacity.
This is not saying that hearing aids are in some manner going to make you more intelligent. But there’s some compelling research that suggests hearing aids can enhance cognitive abilities, lowering your risk for anxiety, depression, and dementia.
You Do a Lot of Hearing With Your Brain
It’s essential to recognize how significant a part your brain plays in hearing if you are going to understand the connection between your ears and cognition. It’s the brain’s job to convert sound vibrations into perceptible sound information. The parts of your brain that translate sound will suddenly have less to do when hearing starts to diminish.
Alterations in your brain (and hearing), coupled with other considerations (such as social alienation), can result in the beginning of mental health issues. In people with untreated hearing loss, it’s not unusual to observe an increase in the chances of depression, anxiety, and dementia.
Your essentially “treating” your hearing loss when you’re wearing hearing aids. That means:
- Social alienation will be less likely. You will be more likely to engage with people if you can hear and understand discussions.
- You can stop your hearing from becoming worse by using hearing aids together with regular screening.
- The regions of your brain responsible for hearing will get regular workouts; the more your brain works, the healthier your brain will be.
Staying Attentive
Hearing aids stimulate your brain and your social life and can lessen depression, anxiety, and dementia.
- Cutting edge technology: Some contemporary hearing aids, when someone falls, can automatically alert emergency services. This may not prevent the fall to begin with, but it can lessen lasting injuries or complications caused by the fall.
- Creating stronger awareness: At times, you fall because you’re not aware of your environment. Your situational awareness can be significantly hindered by hearing problems. Identifying which direction sound is originating from can be as difficult as hearing sound in general. A fall or other accident can be the consequence.
- The health of your inner ear: Inner ear injury is not triggered by loss of hearing alone. But there is normally a common cause for both hearing loss and inner ear damage. Sometimes, a hearing aid is part of the treatment program for loss of hearing which can also help inner ear damage.
Inevitably, when you’re wearing a hearing aid, you’re more likely to avoid a fall to begin with. A hearing aid keeps you more alert, more aware, and more tuned in, strengthening cognitive capabilities and physical health in the process.
Start Wearing Your Hearing Aid
None of this has even yet dealt with the fundamental hearing benefits of hearing aids. So when you consider that amplified hearing, include the mental health benefits and physical well-being, it seems as if using these devices should be an easy choice (not something you need to overthink).
The problem is that many people don’t know they have hearing loss. It can be difficult to recognize loss of hearing when it develops gradually over time. That’s the reason why having a normal hearing test is essential. Without hearing aids, hearing loss can worsen a wide range of other health problems.
Hearing aids will reduce the likelihood of physical injury while helping to slow dementia and depression. Besides helping your hearing, hearing aids provide a striking number of advantages.
