This November, Test Your Hearing in Honor of American Diabetes Month

Did you know that your ability to hear is linked to many other things in your body? We tend to think about each part of the body as a silo. When you think about how the different parts of the body affect each other indirectly, you will see that no part of the body is separate from the others. For example, you might think that the stomach’s only job is to break down food, while the eyes’ only job is to see. Even though this is what holistic medicine is all about, traditional medicine also knows about these connections.

With all the body parts working together to link one function to the next, you might be surprised to find out which parts affect others. For instance, your hearing may seem to work independently, but it is linked to many other body parts.

Your hearing can affect and be affected by other parts of the body.

Hearing loss can sometimes be caused by other parts of the body, like when someone has heart disease. When a person’s body doesn’t get enough oxygenated blood, their hearing can be damaged.

On the other hand, hearing loss can lead to several other health problems. Based on what we know about dementia right now, we think that a lack of verbal information is caused by hearing loss. When this information is missing or broken up, the brain can become confused and lose its ability to think.

Researchers are still trying to determine the link between diabetes and hearing loss. With this in mind, we can think about how to treat both conditions with healthy habits. Let’s look at a few of the most common ideas about how they are linked.

How are diabetes and hearing loss linked?

Researchers are trying to figure out how these two things are related, but we already know that there is a strong statistical link between them.

People with diabetes lose their hearing twice as often as people who don’t have diabetes. Even people who don’t yet have diabetes are more likely to get it. When blood glucose levels are high enough to be called “pre-diabetes,” there is also a 30 percent higher risk of hearing loss in that group.

Considering this information, it is essential to consider how diabetes can affect hearing. Scientists are still looking into this, so they don’t know how diabetes could cause hearing loss. Most theories show high blood sugar can hurt blood vessels and slow blood flow. Researchers think that up-and-down swings in blood sugar levels, which are common in people with diabetes, could damage blood vessels in the ear and cause hearing loss.

Damage to blood vessels could hurt the cochlea, a small, spiral-shaped part of the inner ear that helps turn sound vibrations into nerve impulses sent to the brain and interpreted there.

How can I get help for diabetes?

You need to see a doctor immediately if you think you might have diabetes or pre-diabetes. Your doctor will be able to help you come up with a treatment plan based on your medical history and how likely you are to get diabetes right now.

Signs of hearing loss

If you’ve had diabetes for a while, it might be time to look for the signs of hearing loss.

The symptoms of various forms of hearing loss might vary. Still, generally speaking, if any of these circumstances seem familiar to you, it may be an indication that your hearing has changed:

• You have the TV or radio set at an unbearable volume for others.
• You have trouble hearing conversations in a theater or a movie.
• Phone calls need a lot of effort.
• You often misinterpret what others are saying or ask them to repeat themselves.
• You find it difficult to follow group discussions, which makes you feel alone. You avoid settings that you used to like because of your hearing loss.
• Others joke about how your hearing isn’t as good as it used to be.

If you are concerned about hearing loss, why not get in touch with us to set up a hearing test for American Diabetes Month? Delaying treatment for hearing loss can seriously affect your health and well-being, so don’t wait to contact our offices to get started on the right path to better hearing health.