What's That? Hearing Loss May Cause Mental Decline

You may want to get your ears checked. New research has linked hearing impairment with metal decline in seniors. The study, published in JAMA Archives of Internal Medicine, found that those with hearing loss experience a 30 to 40 percent greater decline in thinking abilities compared to those without hearing loss.

The researchers from Johns Hopkins studied 1,984 adults in their 70s and 80s who showed no signs of impaired memory or thinking at the study's start. The majority of the adults involved, though, did show signs of hearing loss. The scientists then observed the participants over six years and gave them a standard test of memory, concentration, and language skills. They found that 609 men and women developed new signs of mental impairment and that the risk of mental impairment was 24 percent higher among people who had hearing problems.

The findings are worrisome. Researchers estimate that it would take a hearing-impaired older adult just eight years on average in order to develop mental impairment. This is a huge difference from the 11 years it would take for someone who was not hearing-impaired.

While the research is compelling, it does not necessarily prove cause-and-effect. The findings could merely be coincidence, though the researchers did account for other factors that could cause mental impairment such as education levels, smoking habits and health conditions.

Although more research needs to be conducted, previous studies have linked social isolation to an increased risk of dementia. This could have bearing on the current study and back up the findings that hearing-impairment can cause mental decline.