Untreated Hearing Loss

The link between hearing loss and dementia

We all want to maintain our mental sharpness as we get older. Dementia, Alzheimer’s and cognitive decline are conditions every single one of us hopes to avoid.

A growing body of research has shown that hearing loss plays a big role in our ability to stay mentally sharp as we age. In fact, a 2018 review of the research concluded that untreated hearing loss increased the risk of dementia by 50 percent (1).

While researchers admit the science is still inconclusive on exactly why untreated hearing loss increases dementia risk, they do offer three probable reasons.

So, can treating hearing loss help keep us mentally sharp?

There is no current proof that hearing loss treatment can prevent cognitive decline, but two studies strongly suggest it may help.

One studied people over a 25-year period and found that those with self-reported hearing loss who did not wear hearing aids showed evidence of accelerated cognitive decline, while those with hearing loss who did wear hearing aids had no more cognitive decline than their normal-hearing peers (4).

A recent study was even more interesting (5). The study concluded that managing or treating hearing loss in mid-life is one of 12 things you can do to help prevent dementia. And — more importantly — hearing loss was the number one risk factor they recommended you could modify to “reduce the incidence of dementia or substantially delay its onset.”

In fact, researchers suggest that hearing loss treatment could prevent up to 9 percent of the 47 million dementia cases in the world (6).

Wearing hearing aids is the most effective treatment for hearing loss

This link between hearing loss and cognitive decline should give everyone even more incentive to treat hearing loss and not ignore common hear loss signs.