Why Hearing Aids Decrease Depression

Did you realize that age-related hearing loss affects roughly one in three U.S. adults between the ages of 65 and 74 (and roughly half of those over 75)? But despite its prevalence, only around 30% of older Americans who have loss of hearing have ever used hearing aids (and that number goes down to 16% for those under the age of 69!). At least 20 million Americans are afflicted by untreated loss of hearing depending on what research you look at; though some reports put this closer to 30 million.

As people grow older, they neglect getting treatment for loss of hearing for a number of reasons. (One study found that only 28% of people even had their hearing tested, though they said they suffered from loss of hearing, and the majority didn't look for additional treatment. It's just part of growing old, for many people, like wrinkles or grey hair. Hearing loss has long been easy to diagnose, but thanks to the considerable advancements that have been made in the technology of hearing aids, it's also a very manageable condition. Notably, more than only your hearing can be helped by managing hearing loss, according to a growing body of research.

A recent study from a Columbia research group links depression and loss of hearing adding to the body of knowledge. They examine each participant for depression and give them an audiometric hearing exam. After a number of factors are taken into consideration, the analysts found that the odds of showing clinically substantial symptoms of depression climbed by approximately 45% for every 20-decibel increase in hearing loss. And to be clear, 20 dB is very little noise. It's about as loud as rustling leaves and is quieter than a whisper.

It's surprising that such a slight difference in hearing yields such a big boost in the odds of experiencing depression, but the basic connection isn't a shocker. There is a large body of literature on depression and hearing loss and this new study adds to that research, like this multi-year analysis from 2000 which found that hearing loss worsened in relation to a worsening of mental health, or this paper from 2014 that found that both people who reported having trouble hearing and who were discovered to suffer from hearing loss based on hearing exams had a significantly higher risk of depression.

The good news is: the link that researchers suspect is present between hearing loss and depression isn't chemical or biological, it's social. Everyday interactions and social scenarios are generally avoided because of the anxiety due to problems hearing. Social alienation can be the result, which further feeds into feelings of depression and anxiety. It's a vicious cycle, but it's also one that's easily broken.

The symptoms of depression can be alleviated by treating loss of hearing with hearing aids according to several studies. More than 1,000 people in their 70s were evaluated in a 2014 study that revealing that individuals who used hearing aids were significantly less likely to experience symptoms of depression, though the writers didn't establish a cause-and-effect relationship since they weren't evaluating data over time.

However, the concept that treating loss of hearing with hearing aids can ease the symptoms of depression is born out by other research that looked at subjects before and after getting hearing aids. Although only a small cross section of people was looked at in this 2011 research, a total of 34, the analysts found that after only three months using hearing aids, all of them revealed considerable improvement in both depressive symptoms and cognitive functioning. The same result was found from even further out by another minor study from 2012, with every single individual six months out from beginning to wear hearing aids, were continuing to experience less depression. And in a study from 1992 that observed a larger group of U.S. military veterans suffering from hearing loss discovered that a full 12 months after beginning to use hearing aids, fewer symptoms of depression were experienced by the vets.

You're not alone in the difficult struggle with hearing loss. Get in touch with us for a hearing test today.