Why is it essential to get your hearing screened on a regular basis? That’s because your general health can be considerably affected by hearing loss. Having your hearing tested regularly can help you identify hearing loss early, get care faster, and, improve your health, well-being, and quality of life.
Who should get a hearing exam?
Your health and well-being can be significantly impacted by neglected hearing loss. For instance, hearing loss can result in intense social isolation. Discussions with family and friends can become more difficult, and people who suffer from hearing loss may be less likely to reach out to other people, even during routine activities like shopping or going to work. It may not be shocking that this type of social isolation can result in mental health issues, but it might come as a surprise to discover that it can be harmful to your physical health too.
Other health issues can be the result of untreated hearing loss also. For example, untreated hearing loss has been linked to many chronic conditions, including dementia and depression. It’s also been associated with a number of comorbidities, including diabetes, heart problems, and high blood pressure.
This means that it’s generally a good plan for just about anyone to schedule a routine hearing test.
Four reasons to monitor your hearing
There are four significant reasons why checking your hearing can be worthwhile to your overall health.
1. You can identify the baseline for your healthy hearing
It might seem foolish to get your hearing tested while your hearing is still healthy, right? Well, getting a hearing exam early is a good plan for several reasons. Your current level of hearing can be established by a hearing exam and that’s probably the most important thing. If your hearing changes in the future, this will make it simpler to identify. This is particularly true because hearing loss tends to develop slowly, the first symptoms aren’t always noticeable.
Getting a baseline hearing exam will help identify problems long before you notice them.
2. Diagnose and treat problems earlier
Hearing loss normally advances gradually over time. Consequently, identifying hearing loss early frequently means a better prognosis. This is because you’re capable of treating the condition at the earliest possible time.
When you get treatment early it will mean doing things like using ear protection or possibly wearing hearing aids. Many of the associated issues like cognitive decline, social isolation, and depression can be avoided with early treatment.
3. Future changes will be easier to assess
Your hearing loss will keep progressing even after you get diagnosed. Regular hearing exams can help you detect changes as you go along, and make changes to your treatment plan as needed.
4. Additional damage can be prevented
Hearing loss that develops slowly over time is usually caused by damage. Your hearing specialist is a significant resource and seeing us regularly will help you detect any hearing loss as early as possible. We can help you keep your ears as healthy as possible by providing you with treatments, best practices, and information.
We can help you determine ways to keep sounds around you quieter and also help you protect your ears from day-to-day damage.
What should my hearing test routine look like?
In general, it’s recommended that adults get a hearing exam sometime in their 20s or 30s, on the earlier side. It’s usually ordinary best practice to get a hearing exam every ten years thereafter unless you detect signs of hearing loss or we recommend something more frequently.
What should I expect my hearing test to be like? In general, they’re totally non-invasive procedures. Frequently, all you do is wear special headphones and listen for a particular sound.
We will be able to help you get the care you need, whether you need a set of hearing aids or you just need to protect your ears. And a hearing exam can help you figure out when the best time to get your care may be.