Why is it essential to get your hearing tested on a regular basis? Well, the truth is that hearing loss can have significant and long-term effects on your overall health. Having your hearing tested regularly can help you detect hearing loss early, get care sooner, and, improve your health, wellness, and quality of life.
Getting a hearing exam – who should do it?
A loss in hearing ability can produce effects that can significantly impede your health and well-being. For example, hearing loss can result in extreme social isolation. Even while undertaking tasks like going to the store, people with hearing loss will tend to avoid reaching out to family and friends because they have a hard time making out conversations. It might not be shocking that this kind of social isolation can lead to mental health issues, but it might come as a surprise to discover that it can be harmful to your physical health too.
Hearing loss can trigger other issues as well. Numerous chronic conditions, including depression and cognitive decline, have been associated with neglected hearing loss. Comorbidities, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease have also been linked to hearing loss.
So scheduling a routine hearing assessment will be a good strategy for pretty much everybody.
Four reasons to monitor your hearing
Getting your hearing checked can be helpful to your general health for four specific reasons.
1. You can discover the baseline for your healthy hearing
It may seem foolish to get your hearing tested while your hearing is still healthy, right? Well, there are a number of good reasons to take a hearing test early. The most important is that a hearing exam will give us a detailed picture of your present hearing health. If your hearing changes in the future, this will make it simpler to identify. Early symptoms of hearing loss often go undetected because hearing loss often progresses slowly over time.
Before you observe any symptoms, a hearing exam will help identify hearing loss in its early stages.
2. Diagnose and treat issues earlier
Hearing loss is typically a gradual condition, meaning it often gets worse over time. As a result, detecting hearing loss early often means a better prognosis. This is because you’re capable of treating the condition at the earliest possible juncture.
Early treatment might include anything from taking steps to safeguard your hearing like wearing ear protection in loud spaces to using hearing aids. Many of the related issues like dementia, social isolation, and depression can be avoided with early treatment.
3. Future changes will be easier to assess
Your hearing loss will continue to progress 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 necessary.
4. You can avoid additional damage to your ears
Hearing loss that develops gradually over time is usually caused by damage. Your hearing specialist is a considerable resource and visiting us regularly will help you identify 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 exam routine look like?
On the earlier side, adults should put off no longer than their early twenties to begin routine hearing tests. Unless we recommend more frequent visits or if you notice any hearing problems, at least every ten years will be the advised interval for hearing exams.
But perhaps you’re thinking: what should I expect at my hearing test? Hearing tests are generally totally non-invasive. Usually, you simply listen for some tones in a special set of headphones.
We will be able to help you get the treatment you need, whether you need a set of hearing aids or you just need to protect your ears. And we can help you figure out what your hearing exam schedule should be.