You may be familiar with the various aspects contributing to hearing loss, including the impact of getting older, genetic predisposition within families, or extended exposure to loud sounds. However, you might find it intriguing to discover the link between diabetes and hearing loss. Let’s dig a little deeper into that.
How does diabetes raise your risk of hearing loss?
The prevalence of diabetes increases as you get older, and 37 million individuals, or 9% of the United States population, have this condition according to the CDC. And if you’re dealing with diabetes, you’re twice as likely to develop hearing loss. Even in pre-diabetics, constituting 133 million Americans, the degree of hearing loss is 30% higher than in individuals with normal blood sugar levels.
Diabetes can cause nerve damage across various bodily regions, encompassing the hands, feet, eyes, kidneys, and ears. Elevated blood sugar levels can cause the degeneration of small blood vessels and nerves in the inner ears. And on the other end of the spectrum, the transmission of nerve signals from the inner ear can be interrupted by low blood sugar. Both scenarios can contribute to hearing loss.
The lack of diabetes management induces chronic high blood pressure, causing damage to the heart, blood vessels, kidneys, nerves, and eyes.
Signs you might be dealing with hearing loss
Hearing loss frequently happens gradually and can go undetected if you aren’t actively paying attention. In many situations, friends and co-workers might detect the problem before you identify it.
Some suggestive signs of hearing loss include:
- Keeping the TV volume really loud
- Having a difficult time hearing in loud places
- Constantly needing people to repeat what they said
- Feeling like people are mumbling when they talk
- Trouble following phone conversations
If you experience any of these challenges or if someone points out changes in your hearing, it’s worthwhile to consult with us. After performing a hearing screening, we will establish a baseline for future visits and help you with any problems you may be having with balance.
Be proactive if your managing diabetes
We encourage anyone with diabetes to get an annual hearing check.
Keep your blood sugar levels within the desired range.
Steer clear of loud noises and shield your ears by using earplugs.