Why is it important to get your hearing assessed on a regular basis? Well, the truth is that hearing loss can have significant and long-term impacts on your overall wellness. Having your hearing screened regularly can help you detect hearing loss early, get care sooner, and, improve your health, wellness, and quality of life.
Who should get a hearing test?
A loss in hearing capability can produce effects that can greatly hinder your health and wellness. Social isolation, for instance, can be a result of untreated hearing loss. Discussions with family and friends can become more challenging, and those with hearing loss may be less likely to reach out to other people, even during normal activities like grocery shopping or going to work. It might not be shocking that this kind of social isolation can result in mental health problems, but it might come as a surprise to learn that it can be detrimental to your physical health too.
Hearing loss can trigger other problems as well. Numerous chronic conditions, including depression and cognitive decline, have been associated with untreated hearing loss. It’s also been associated with various comorbidities, including diabetes, heart problems, and high blood pressure.
So scheduling a routine hearing test will be a good plan for pretty much everyone.
You should get your hearing checked for these four reasons
There are four significant reasons why checking your hearing can be worthwhile to your overall health.
1. You can determine the baseline for your healthy hearing
It may seem silly to take a hearing test while your hearing is still healthy, right? Well, there are several good reasons to get a hearing exam early. Your current level of hearing can be established by a hearing exam and that’s probably the most significant thing. If your hearing changes in the future, this will make it simpler to detect. This is particularly true because hearing loss tends to progress slowly, the first symptoms aren’t always obvious.
Getting a baseline hearing test will help identify problems well before you observe them.
2. Diagnose and treat issues earlier
Hearing loss normally advances slowly over time. As a result, identifying hearing loss early frequently means a better prognosis. This is because you’re able to treat the condition at the earliest possible juncture.
Early treatment may include anything from taking steps to protect your hearing like wearing ear protection in noisy spaces to using hearing aids. Treatment can help you avoid many of the associated issues listed above, such as dementia, depression, and social isolation.
3. It’s easier to measure future changes
Even if you’re diagnosed with hearing loss, that doesn’t mean your hearing won’t continue to get worse as you get older. Regular hearing exams can help you detect changes as you go along, and make adjustments to your treatment plan as needed.
4. You can avoid additional damage to your ears
Hearing loss that progresses gradually over time is usually caused by damage. Your hearing specialist is a significant 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 figure out ways to keep sounds around you quieter and also help you protect your ears from day-to-day damage.
How frequently should I have my hearing assessed?
On the earlier side, adults should wait no longer than their early twenties to start routine hearing exams. Unless we suggest more frequent visits or if you detect any hearing problems, at least every ten years will be the advised interval for hearing tests.
But perhaps you’re thinking: what should I expect at my hearing test? Generally, they’re entirely non-invasive procedures. Often, all you do is put on special headphones and listen for a specific sound.
Whether you need some hearing protection or a new pair of hearing aids, we will be able to help you with the best hearing care. And we can help you figure out what your hearing test schedule should be.