Have you avoided the calls from friends, family, and co-workers to finally get a hearing aid? Are you feeling that presently you really don’t need a hearing aid or that you’re not missing enough to justify purchasing one?
If your hearing keeps getting worse, it could cost you as much as $30,000 per year, even if you think that it’s fine right now. Going without a portion of your hearing means you may miss significant work or medical information and opportunities, and you could end up injuring yourself physically, too.
Lost opportunities and unemployment
If you don’t hear everything you need to, it will ultimately effect your work performance. You could lose out on future projects because you couldn’t follow instructions on past work, or your relationship with co-workers could have deteriorated due to your being unable to hear them. If you become socially isolated at work, you could end up overlooked by people at all levels of the company. These ”little” things compound over time and affect your ability to attain your highest earning potential. Research conducted by the Better Hearing Institute discovered that individuals with untreated hearing loss earned, on average, $20,000 less a year than those who dealt with their loss of hearing.
Unemployment rates are also increased for individuals with neglected hearing loss, according to other research. People who don’t treat their hearing loss will be 15% more likely to be unemployed. So, as the years pass, letting your hearing loss go unattended may end up costing you lot’s of money.
Falls will cost you even more in medical bills
Neglected hearing loss can deal another financial blow by actually making you more likely to fall. The chance of falling increases by 300% for people with even mild untreated hearing loss as reported by one study. In addition, there is a 1.4-fold increase in falls for every additional 10 dB of hearing loss. The vestibular system manages balance and researchers think there might be a link between the degree of hearing loss and how it affects that system. Or, it may also be plausible that someone with neglected hearing loss simply gets lost in their environment because they are overcompensating with their other senses. And when you fall it frequently results in a costly trip to the doctor.
Worse health outcomes
But that’s not all. If you can’t hear well, you might miss instructions from your physician. If you miss information from your doctor, you could end up having worse outcomes in health matters, thus resulting in more costs and more issues. A huge financial gap will be the result. Multiple studies have connected untreated hearing loss to significantly higher medical expenses over time. One study noted the average increase was more than $20,000 over a ten year period and that these individuals were 40% more likely to end up in the emergency room. More recent research from the University of South Carolina suggested that neglected hearing loss resulted in a 33% increase in healthcare costs over an 18 month period.
Moderate to profound untreated hearing loss can lead to a substantially higher risk of death according to a study circulated by Johns Hopkins University.
So it’s time for a hearing test if you want to protect yourself financially and physically. You may need hearing aids depending on the test results. You will most likely get a pleasant surprise if you do. Hearing aids these days are state-of-the-art, very comfortable to use, and sound clear. Take advantage of the available technology to improve your life in all aspects.
References
https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2018/patients-with-untreated-hearing-loss-incur-higher-health-care-costs-over-time
https://www.utsouthwestern.edu/newsroom/articles/year-2022/july-hearing-loss-and-falls
