Why is it worthwhile to get your hearing tested regularly? That’s because your overall health can be significantly affected by hearing loss. Your quality of life will be improved, your health will be improved, and you will get proper treatment faster if you get tested regularly.
Getting a hearing test – who should do it?
A loss in hearing capability can produce effects that can seriously impede your health and wellness. For example, hearing loss can result in intense social isolation. Even while carrying out tasks such as going to the store, people with hearing loss will often avoid reaching out to family and friends because they have a difficult time understanding conversations. This sort of social isolation can be detrimental to your mental health and, perhaps somewhat surprisingly, your physical wellness.
Hearing loss can cause other problems as well. For example, neglected hearing loss has been linked to many chronic conditions, including cognitive decline and depression. It’s also been linked to a number of comorbidities, including diabetes, heart conditions, and high blood pressure.
So scheduling a routine hearing exam will be a good plan for pretty much everybody.
Four reasons to monitor your hearing
Getting your hearing checked can be helpful to your general health for four distinct reasons.
1. Setting a baseline for your hearing is significant
It may seem silly to get your hearing tested while your hearing is still healthy, right? Well, getting a hearing test early is a good idea for a number of reasons. The most significant is that a hearing exam will give us a detailed picture of your present hearing health. This will make it much easier to diagnose any changes in the future. Early symptoms of hearing loss usually go undetected because hearing loss often progresses slowly over time.
Getting a baseline hearing test will help identify problems long before you notice them.
2. Diagnose and treat problems earlier
Hearing loss is typically a gradual condition, meaning it tends to get worse over time. Consequently, identifying hearing loss early often 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 hearing protection or potentially wearing hearing aids. Treatment can help prevent many of the related problems listed above, such as dementia, depression, and social isolation.
3. Future changes will be easier to evaluate
Your hearing loss will keep progressing even after you get diagnosed. Routine hearing tests can help you detect changes as you go along, and make changes to your treatment plan as necessary.
4. Additional damage can be prevented
Hearing loss that progresses slowly over time is usually caused by damage. Visiting us regularly to get your hearing assessed helps you detect that damage as early as possible, and it also gives you access to a significant resource: your hearing specialist. We can give you information, treatments, and best practices that can help keep your ears as healthy as possible.
For instance, we can help you determine ways to protect your ears from day-to-day damage or develop strategies created to help you keep sounds around you quieter.
How frequently should I have my hearing assessed?
Generally speaking, it’s suggested that adults undergo a hearing exam sometime in their 20s or 30s, on the earlier side. Unless we recommend more frequent visits or if you detect any hearing issues, 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 exam? Hearing tests are usually entirely non-invasive. Typically, you simply listen for some tones in a special pair of headphones.
Whether you need some hearing protection or a new set of hearing aids, we will be able to help you with the best hearing care. And a hearing test can help you figure out when the best time to get your care may be.
