You do not hear with your ears. Your ears are merely an appendage to collect sound and direct it to your brain, where the sound is processed, sorted, filtered, and deciphered so you can understand the world around you.
As processing, sorting, and filtering become increasingly complex, your ability to understand is negatively correlated with comprehension, which decreases.
Recent studies have revealed that there are clear connections between dementia and hearing loss. The goal of this piece is to help you understand how they are related and what steps you can take right now to lower the risks.
The Brain’s Role in Hearing
While your ears collect sound waves and convert them into electrical signals, they are merely the gateway.
The act of “hearing” unfolds deep within the intricate network of your brain.
Your ears funnel acoustic energy through the auditory canal to the eardrum, and then into the delicate structures of the middle and inner ear.
Here, these vibrations are transformed into neural impulses, electrical messages that travel quickly along the auditory nerve.
These raw electrical signals are meticulously processed, sorted, filtered, and deciphered by various regions of your brain, particularly within the auditory cortex located in the temporal lobe.
It’s here that mere vibrations are transformed into meaningful information: speech, music, environmental cues, and so much more.
All of this action occurs instantly.
This complex neural orchestration allows you to understand directions, appreciate a melody, and interpret the subtle nuances in a loved one’s voice.
However, when the efficiency of this processing, sorting, and filtering within the brain becomes compromised, your ability to understand the world around you is negatively impacted.
You feel less connected; everything is more challenging to navigate.
When hearing loss occurs or cognitive decline is experienced, these factors become interconnected, making life less enjoyable and more challenging.
Hearing Loss and Dementia
The groundbreaking work by Dr. Frank Lin and his colleagues at Johns Hopkins University has transformed the way doctors and audiologists approach dementia and hearing loss.
One of their studies has revealed individuals with hearing loss experience a 30-40% accelerated rate of cognitive decline compared to those with normal hearing.
What’s particularly concerning is the dose-response relationship: the more significant the hearing loss, the greater the likelihood of developing a cognitive disorder and experiencing a steeper decline in mental function.
For instance, research shows that mild hearing loss can double the risk of dementia, moderate loss can triple it, and severe impairment can increase the risk by as much as five times.
Researchers have observed that even very mild hearing loss, often before it becomes noticeable in daily conversations, is associated with accelerated rates of gray matter shrinkage in the brain.
Gray matter is crucial for processing information, and its reduction suggests a significant impact on brain structure and function, not just the auditory pathways but also areas linked to memory and sensory integration.
This underscores the idea that changes occur in the brain long before significant hearing difficulties become apparent.
Hearing Loss as a Leading Modifiable Risk Factor for Dementia
In 2017, a collaboration of twenty-four international researchers identified nine key risk factors for dementia, with hearing loss identified as the highest contributing factor.
Subsequent reports, including the 2020 and 2024 updates, have reaffirmed and further emphasized this critical link, identifying hearing loss as one of 12 (now 14) modifiable risk factors that, if addressed globally, could potentially prevent or delay up to 40% of dementia cases.
This means that, among all the factors we can potentially change in our lives to reduce the risk of dementia, addressing hearing loss holds immense promise.
It highlights a powerful opportunity for preventative measures on both individual and public health levels.
The Social and Emotional Ramifications of Hearing Loss
For individuals with hearing loss, participating in everyday conversations, especially in noisy environments, demands immense concentration.
This constant “effortful listening” consumes a significant amount of brain space, making social interactions exhausting rather than enjoyable.
Activities like family gatherings, group outings, or even phone calls become sources of frustration and embarrassment, leading to increased isolation.
This social withdrawal has serious consequences for mental and emotional health.
Research indicates that untreated hearing loss is associated with higher rates of depression, anxiety, and feelings of loneliness.
Studies show that social isolation itself is a significant risk factor for cognitive decline and dementia, independent of hearing loss.
The lack of regular social interaction can lead to mental stagnation, as the brain receives less varied stimulation from external conversations and activities.
The interconnectedness of these factors creates a challenging cycle. Untreated hearing loss leads to increased listening effort, which fuels social withdrawal and feelings of isolation.
This, in turn, reduces cognitive stimulation and can hurt mental health.
Ultimately, this ongoing cycle contributes to a decline in the overall quality of life.
However, there are ways to lower the risk of cognitive decline by maintaining good hearing health.
Debunking Hearing Loss Myths and Addressing Common Concerns
Is Hearing Loss Just a Sign of Old Age?
Myth: “Hearing loss is just a normal part of getting old, so there’s nothing to do about it.”
Fact: While hearing loss is more prevalent with age, it’s not an inevitable or untreatable consequence of aging.
Many factors, including noise exposure, genetics, and certain health conditions, contribute to hearing loss, which can affect people of all ages.
Are Hearing Aids Only for Severe Hearing Loss?
Myth: “My hearing loss isn’t that bad, so I don’t need hearing aids yet. They’re only for people with severe hearing impairment.”
Fact: This is a significant misconception.
Research, including studies from Johns Hopkins, shows that even mild, often unnoticed, hearing loss can accelerate cognitive decline.
Addressing hearing loss early, even when it’s mild, is critical for preserving brain function and can significantly improve communication.
Do Hearing Aids Make You Look Old or Frail?
Myth: “Wearing hearing aids will make me look old, infirm, or less capable.”
Fact: Modern hearing aids are incredibly discreet, technologically advanced, and often barely visible.
Many are virtually unnoticeable, fitting entirely in the ear canal or behind the ear with thin, transparent wires.
Will My Hearing Get Worse If I Wear Hearing Aids?
Myth: “If I start wearing hearing aids, my ears will become lazy, and my hearing will get worse.”
Fact: This is untrue.
Hearing aids do not make your hearing worse; they provide necessary amplification and clarity to the sounds your brain isn’t receiving adequately.
They help keep your auditory pathways active and stimulated, which is crucial for maintaining speech understanding and overall cognitive function.
Is It Okay to Wait Until My Hearing Loss Is Severe?
Myth: “I’ll wait until my hearing loss is really bad before I do anything about it.”
Fact: Waiting is detrimental to your hearing health.
Hearing loss is one of the most significant modifiable risk factors for dementia.
Addressing it early is a preventative measure.
The longer you wait, the more your brain has to work to compensate, leading to cognitive strain and potentially irreversible changes in the brain’s ability to process sound and other information.
Early intervention preserves more cognitive function and facilitates the adaptation to hearing devices more easily.
Protect Your Hearing Health with Hearing Health Center
At Hearing Health Center, your hearing health is our priority. Schedule a comprehensive baseline hearing test and improve the quality of your life immediately.
Untreated hearing problems are the number one modifiable risk factor for dementia. Even mild levels of hearing loss can double your risk. Dr. Katrina Lapham, an audiologist from Chicago’s Hearing Health Center discusses how to join the fight to battle dementia by getting your hearing tested free of charge. Plus, Hearing Health Center will donate $20 to the Alzheimer’s Association in your name. It’s our way of helping to protect your hearing and preserve your brain. Visit our website to make your appointment today at https://hearinghealthcenter.com/hearing-and-alzheimers/
Hearing loss formerly thought “minor” can cause cognitive problems
Studies now show significant changes in the brains of those with early stage hearing loss in comparison with those whose hearing is normal. Specifically, even with minimal auditory deprivation, the brain actually re-organizes itself, which results in poorer speech processing in noise and deterioration of cognitive functioning.
This is a problem. The good news: the decline is reversible.
Following clinical treatment with high-quality, expertly fitted hearing aids, the brain re-organized itself back to the original state.
Just six months after wearing hearing aids, both visual and working memory improved. In addition, processing speed as well as executive cognitive skill* performance were increased
Even better news: You can change the number one risk factor for dementia.
The association between genetics and Alzheimer’s is 60%. That means you have control of 40%.
According to distinguished medical journal The Lancet, “among all of the modifiable risk factors, hearing loss is the most significant modifiable factor leading to dementia.”
Your hearing ability accounts for 37% of all the factors you can change to reduce your risk of dementia.
NO TIME TO LOSE…GET YOUR HEARING CHECKED ASAP!
Call your local office to discuss further or click here to make an appointment.
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*Executive cognitive functions are the prerequisite to any purposeful and goal-directed action. They allow one to generate plans, solutions to problems, or organizing structures that guide future action. They rely on working memory, mental flexibility, and retrieval of relevant information from memory stores.
The Link Between Hearing Loss and Dementia
Hearing loss could be an early symptom of Alzheimer’s disease
In 2011, Dr. Ronna Fisher, Au.D., informed her staff about the link between dementia and hearing loss. She said Hearing Health Center, the Company she founded in 1984, has a new mission: To tell and educate everyone they meet about the dangers and risks of hearing loss. Her staff did not believe her. No one did, including the physicians she tried to educate.
That did not stop her. Dr. Fisher is known for being an early adopter in hearing techniques and technology. She knew that poor capacity to process and understand speech is a sign that the brain is shutting down. “When the brain can no longer make sense of the information it receives, cognitive function is in danger,” Said Fisher. She enacted a new diagnostic protocol at all Hearing Health Center offices. The new protocol included testing the brain’s ability to process and understand speech, especially in background noise.
The link between hearing loss and dementia is now definitive.
“The risk of developing dementia doubles for older adults with mild hearing loss, and triples for those with moderate hearing loss. In addition, for those with severe hearing loss, the risk is five times that of someone who does not suffer hearing loss. Notably, the Lancet study also found that of nine potential risk factors for developing dementia, hearing loss was the highest at nine percent.”
By 2060, the proportion of those over 60 will double, and those living with dementia is expected to triple. In addition, recent research has found that shrinkage of brain tissue is fast-tracked for those with hearing loss. The rate of brain tissue atrophy accelerates 40% faster in those with hearing loss when compared to those with normal hearing. Overall, those with hearing loss were found to have lost more than an additional cubic centimeter of brain tissue each year compared with those without impaired hearing.
To date, we do not know the actual causal or correlational link between the two conditions. There are however, several theories.
- Hearing loss and cognitive decline occur in parallel. Hearing loss could be an early symptom of Alzheimer’s disease, causing impaired speech perception, especially in the presence of background noise. “Studies have shown a strong association, and, in addition, we have seen that the severity of cognitive decline is associated with the severity of hearing loss, which shows a compelling connection.”
- Hearing loss increases demands on cognitive resources. The brain has to work a lot harder just to attend and listen with diminished hearing ability. The struggle to understand, and grasp, the conversation requires the brain to “borrow” cognitive tasks from other parts of the brain, especially memory. Basically, the more effort it takes to listen, the less information gets transferred to memory,
- Hearing loss causes brain reorganization and/or social deprivation, resulting in cognitive decline. A decrease in hearing ability often causes withdrawal from social interactions and engagement. In turn, there is a reduction in cognitive function necessary to access and interact with the environment.
Regardless of cause/effect/correlation between hearing loss and dementia, it is definitive that early detection and treatment with hearing aids is critical in preventing and/or slowing cognitive decline. A new study at the University of Manchester claimed wearing hearing aids could slow the process of dementia by up to 75 percent.
Several mechanisms may explain the relationship between hearing aid use and slower cognitive decline.
- Hearing aids reduce depression, promote social engagement, increase both social engagement and physical activity, and improve self-efficacy.
- Hearing aids reduce the adverse impacts of sensory deprivation on brain function.
- Hearing aids stimulate the neural pathways to the brain and increase the critical information the brain needs to process speech.
Audiologists are the only uniquely qualified experts who are skilled in providing diagnostic and rehabilitative care in treating hearing, balance and tinnitus.
Thousands of patients are grateful and thankful to Hearing Health Center. As one patient succinctly stated, “Staying abreast of the latest medical news, pro-actively implementing new techniques, and offering the latest technology from every manufacturer, is why I went there 8 years ago and why I won’t go anywhere else.”
If we seem a little smarter about new hearing technologies next time you come in, here’s why.
Hearing Health Center audiologists learn about new hearing technologies through committed continuing education
Several times a year, we close all five offices and everyone gets together for an intense, idea-filled day of Continuing Education. Friday, August 23, was one of those days—with a full program of expert speakers, demonstrations and hands-on experience with the newest of the new in Audiology.
“We’re in an industry with technical and treatment advances happening continuously and our patients depend on us to be on the cutting-edge of progress at all times,” said Director of Operations Marsela Kole, who was the Event Chairperson.
The “next generation” hearing aids from the world’s leading manufacturers garnered profound interest. They provide benefits to wearers that go far beyond hearing quality and clarity that have exceeded all expectations. Patients who have worn hearing aids for years will discover processing power far beyond anything they’ve experienced, letting them understand speech effortlessly in noisy settings—with unwanted sounds suppressed.
Features of this new hearing technology include many vital functions for health, safety and information never before associated with hearing aids. The revolutionary devices include ones that monitor brain and body activity, can actually sense if the wearer has fallen and automatically send out alerts to three pre-selected contacts. Others can be serviced via an app, avoiding an office visit, and stream telephone, TV, music and messages directly into the patients’ ears.
Marsela Kole said “These days are always a good chance for the teams from each of the offices to get together, compare notes and participate together in group activities. There’s always some fun to be had.”
Tackling Cocktail Parties: The AI Hearing Aids that Read Your Mind
The human brain is unparalleled in its ability to pick out certain phrases and attention-grabbing phrases that pique our interest from the din of everyday life. Hearing aids, on the other hand, are not-so-hot at the so-called “cocktail party effect,” – rather than singling out the center of attention, they amplify all auditory stimuli equally.
However, this past week researchers unveiled a potential solution to this equal-amplification issue: a revolutionary AI (artificial intelligence) hearing aid that is able to read one’s mind. It works by employing artificial intelligence to segment the sounds of different speakers and sources while reading the brain’s activity to select a center of attention. From there, these hearing aids amplify that single voice/stimulus that the brain is focusing on, as explained in Science Advances.
This forward-thinking technology has unlimited potential to disrupt the hearing industry, but there are still significant hurdles to surmount before the consumer is able to benefit from this innovative research. For this AI-powered hearing aid to be widely accessible to all consumers, it cannot require implanting electrodes on the surface of the brain as it currently entails.
This innovative project is led by electrical engineer Nima Mesgarani of Columbia University’s Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, one of many attempting to get hearing aids to mimic the hearing of a healthy individual. For instance, the $500 Bose Hearphone app uses a series of microphones that can be directionally-adjusted from one person to another to focus better on one specific auditory source as well as drowning out ambient noise from the environment. No current device, app or program is able to replicate how a normal brain hears: amplifying selected conversations from multiple different sources in a crowded environment.
“Even the most advanced digital hearing aids don’t know which voices they should suppress and which they should amplify,” Mesgarani states.
If hearing aids were able to unilaterally choose the correct focal point, it would make a major difference in the lives of the hard-of-hearing, says Richard Miller, Director of the Neural Prosthetics Program at the National Institute and Other Communication Disorders which funded the study. “There is real gold to be mined in that hill,” posits Miller.
Building off of his work with a graduate adviser in 2012, Mesgarani started to look for clues in the way that the brain processes stimuli. He found that when people engage in conversation, the listener’s brain waves echo the acoustic attributes of the speaker’s voice, keying in on that voice and filtering out unnecessary auditory provocations.
An individual with healthy hearing is able to focus on the sound of someone speaking through the brain’s secondary auditory cortexes. Found on both sides of the brain behind the ears, these regions amplify one voice over others by the simple means of paying attention. The sound of a friend or loved one, a name, or an emotionally-charged word (secret, confidential) causes a spike in activity in the auditory cortices, resulting in the perceived increase in volume.
This brain-controlled hearing aid will first separate distinct audio signals coming from different sources (people, music, television) and determines the voiceprint of each (frequency). From there, it detects brain waves in the listener’s auditory cortex which indicates where the listener’s attention lies. Finally, the system searches for the source that the brain is focused on and amplifies that incitation. The truly amazing aspect of this technology is that this process repeats every time a new voice is introduced or the attention switches.
This research showcases a growing list of studies that are tapping into the brain’s activity to make up for an output that the body cannot otherwise manage. For there to be widespread adoption of this technology, the mind-reading hearing aids would have to be made to work with using electrodes on the scalp. Luckily, the Columbia team is working on both the scalp version as well as with electrodes surrounding the ears. The earlier iterations of this artificial intelligence-powered hearing aid worked only on familiar voices that individuals had been trained to recognize. It could parse out these voices but couldn’t differentiate between unknown ones. Sounds good right? The next-gen device “can recognize and decode a voice – any voice – right off the bat,” Mesgarani said. To read the full story, click here.
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Protecting your hearing doesn’t mean skipping activities you love; learn how to get the most out of your concert experience.
Let’s face it: today’s world has become increasingly loud, yet people do not think about their ears when attending concerts. They may say, “I’m paying to hear the music, why would I plug my ears?” Well, there is plenty of research to suggest that loud noises damage your hearing, the most alarming is the fact that the average live concert clocks in at 100 decibels at the back of the venue. If you move closer to the stage, you not only are closer to the speakers but also the fans screaming all around you.
Your hearing health is integral to your overall well-being. While you could get away with using disposable foam earplugs that you buy in mass quantities of neon colors, there are earplugs that have been specifically engineered for music-goers. Rather than suffocate all noise reaching your ear, these earplugs use filters with a nearly flat frequency which dials back the volume rather than muting the audio. As you can expect, these plugs cost more than your bargain plugs you get at the drug store, but they are well worth the cost of hearing music without sacrificing your long term hearing health.
National Public Radio’s (NPR) Tiny Desk is an intimate concert series where artists play for an audience in a small, office-sized studio. The trick to these performances is that no musician plays louder than the singer can project their voice without amplification, ensuring a clear and balanced sound. Sound engineers are able to create this because the studio is a small space. However, when sound engineers need to balance a venue bigger than a typical office that balance goes out the window. As we know, the louder the sound is, distortion also increases. If you prefer to be close to the performance, being closer to the speakers inevitably can lead to hearing loss.
Hearing loss is an extremely common condition, especially as we age. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders states that prolonged exposure to sounds can damage the cells in the inner ear and cause noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) and tinnitus. Any extended contact with noise of 85 decibels (sounds of heavy city traffic) can and will damage your hearing. Makes sense right?
If you or a loved one have experienced hearing loss, schedule a completely free appointment today.
To read full story, click here.
Medications
According to the Government Accountability Office, only 1 to 10% of all adverse side effects are reported to the FDA.
In a case of notable regulatory short-sightedness, drug companies are only required to report adverse effects they deem “statistically significant.” Many medications cause hearing loss, tinnitus (ringing in the ears), cognitive disorders and memory loss. These adverse reactions are not listed in the manufacturer’s “warnings of adverse side effects.”
THE LINK
It is well known that drugs and treatment that save the lives of patients with cancer cause permanent and irreversible hearing loss.
It is also known that many antibiotics and pain relieving, anti-inflammatory drugs (aspirin, Motrin, NSAIDs) damage the auditory system. It is less well known and rarely acknowledged, that drugs such as Viagra and other erectile dysfunction drugs directly affect hearing.
In addition, diuretics used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure, statin medications to lower cholesterol and even many over-the-counter and herbal medications can cause hearing loss, balance disorders and severe tinnitus.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Get a baseline hearing test now. Bring a comprehensive list of the medications that you are taking. If you are associated with hearing, balance, tinnitus or dizziness, your audiologist will contact your doctor to discuss alternative medications that are not ototoxic.
Dr. Ronna Fisher, Au.D.
Founder & President
Hearing Health Center, Inc.
Falls and Balance
Dizziness and balance problems increase significantly with age. Over 70% of those over age 65 seek treatment and one third of everyone over 65 will fall. (Center for Disease Control). Falls are the leading cause of death over age 65.
THE LINK
A recent study done by Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the National Institute on Aging found that hearing loss significantly increase the risk of falling. The news could have far-reaching implications when it comes to preventing falls and maintaining independent lives.
There are several reasons why a decrease in hearing increases balance problems and the risk of falling. Hearing loss decreases awareness of of people, pets or other sounds in the environment. Spatial awareness, i.e. where the body is positioned in relation to other people and objects around it, and is crucial for maintaining gait and balance. In addition, many researchers point to cognitive overload as a hindrance to balance
Research as to whether hearing aids helped maintain balance were resoundingly conclusive – the results were overwhelmingly YES. Sound information alone, coming through the hearing aids, plays a large role in maintaining balance.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Get a baseline hearing test now. Make a list of your current medications. Report any balance, dizziness or vertigo issues and symptoms to your audiologist. Physical therapy, balance training and exercises are effective in treating 85% of all balance and dizziness problems. If you have any balance, hearing or clarity problems, seek treatment immediately.
Dr. Ronna Fisher, Au.D.
Founder & President
Hearing Health Center, Inc.
Hearing loss is the most common chronic condition associated with depression in people 60 years or older (JAMA Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery. 2017), particularly in women. The National Council on Aging found that wearing hearing aids helps prevent social isolation and depression. Most impressive is the study published in the Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics showing a marked improvement in emotional, social and cognitive conditions after wearing hearing aids for just three months.
Individuals with hearing loss show a 40% accelerated rate of cognitive decline (Frank Lin, MD., Ph.D., Johns Hopkins). With significant to profound the hearing loss, there is a greater the likelihood of developing a cognitive disorder and the steeper decline in mental function. Even those with a very mild hearing loss (even before the hearing loss becomes noticeable), these individuals show accelerated rates of gray matter shrinkage in the brain.
THE LINK
“Belongingness” is a basic and innate human emotional need. According to Roy Baumeister and Mark Leary, all human beings need a certain minimnum quantiy of regular, satisfying interactions. Inability to meet this need results in loneliness and mental distress. The desire to form and maintain social bonds is among the most powerful human motives. Without social bonds, the ability to self-regulate suffers. (Baumesiter, R. F., DeWall, C. N., Ciarocco, N. J., & Twenge, J.M. (2005), Social exclusion impairs self-regulation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, (88)4, 589.)
Humans have a profound need to connect with others and gain acceptance into social groups. When relationships deteriorate or when social bonds are broken, depression may set in. The world over, in every country, culture and religion, people are most happy when they are with those they care about and love. It is a frustrating and isolating feeling to be with those who you hold dear only to feel left out because you do not understand the conversations and cannot participate in sharing. According to Steger, M. F., & Kashdan, (T. B. 2009) people who are depressed often feel unable to satisfy their need for belonging, leading to having fewer intimate relationships. They also induce negative feelings and reactions in others, which consequently elicits rejections. The effects of rejection are more potent than the effects of acceptance because rejection causes emotional hurt and pain (Buckley, Winkel and Leary).
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Get a baseline hearing test and brain processing evaluation now. If you have any hearing or processing difficulties, seek immediate treatment.
Dr. Ronna Fisher, Au.D.
Founder & President
Hearing Health Center, Inc.