How can I protect my hearing from damaging environmental factors?

Try to avoid loud noise and keep music to a low volume. If you work in a sound-sensitive environment, your employer has a duty under health and safety regulations to protect you from loud noise. The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 200 5 state that the level at which an employer must provide ear protection from loud noise, including earplugs, earphones, earmuffs or a hearing protection zone, is 85 decibels.

What is the difference between profound hearing loss and severe hearing loss?

Profound hearing loss is a medical term which describes the severity or level of hearing loss. Profound hearing loss means that a person cannot hear any sound, including speech and environmental noise. Profound hearing loss can be acquired over time as part of a degenerative condition or be present from birth. Severe hearing loss is not a medical term. It describes a level of hearing disruption which could have many different causes and is not always permanent.

What is sensorineural hearing loss?

Sensorineural hearing loss or SNHL is a condition resulting from damage to the tiny hair cells in the inner ear. The degree of hearing impairment and the frequencies affected can vary. Some people lose their ability to hear high-frequency sounds, but the condition varies from one person to another. Sensorineural hearing loss can be in one ear (unilateral) or both ears (bilateral). The natural ageing process and exposure to loud noise are two of the most common causes of sensorineural hearing loss.

Is sign language difficult to learn?

Sign language shot to prominence after the actress, Rose Ayling-Ellis, won the popular BBC dance show Strictly Come Dancing in 2021 . Her dance partner and the judges began to use sign language, and the show inspired a whole new generation to take up the challenge of learning sign language. However, it does require application and patience to learn correctly and is more complicated than it looks.

Is there a National Institute for advice on impaired hearing?

The RNID is the national charity for hearing compromise. Formerly called 'Action on Hearing Loss,' the charity reverted to its original name in 2020. There is lots of helpful advice, information and signposting for further assitance.

Does the coronavirus vaccination cause Sensorineural hearing loss?

The World Health Organisation has been examining a small number of reported cases of auditory issues and tinnitus following the Covid-19 vaccination. Combined numbers were less than 500 people out of an administered 11 billion vaccine doses. The cases seemed to be linked to the Pfizer vaccine and were reported by the WHO as extremely rare.

Dealing with hearing loss in later life

Most people think hearing loss is an inevitability of growing older
There are multiple causes of hearing reduction in later years, which are not always caused by the ageing process and many of which can be treated or managed
Admitting to a degree of deafness is something many older people don’t want to face up to, but it will enhance your quality of life to improve your hearing
Start the journey to improved hearing and reconnect with the world again

Hearing Loss: FAQs

How can I protect my hearing from damaging environmental factors?
Try to avoid loud noise and keep music to a low volume. If you work in a sound-sensitive environment, your employer has a duty under health and safety regulations to protect you from loud noise. The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 state that the level at which an employer must provide ear protection from loud noise, including earplugs, earphones, earmuffs or a hearing protection zone, is 85 decibels.
What is the difference between profound hearing loss and severe hearing loss?
Profound hearing loss is a medical term which describes the severity or level of hearing loss. Profound hearing loss means that a person cannot hear any sound, including speech and environmental noise. Profound hearing loss can be acquired over time as part of a degenerative condition or be present from birth. Severe hearing loss is not a medical term. It describes a level of hearing disruption which could have many different causes and is not always permanent.
What is sensorineural hearing loss?
Sensorineural hearing loss or SNHL is a condition resulting from damage to the tiny hair cells in the inner ear. The degree of hearing impairment and the frequencies affected can vary. Some people lose their ability to hear high-frequency sounds, but the condition varies from one person to another. Sensorineural hearing loss can be in one ear (unilateral) or both ears (bilateral). The natural ageing process and exposure to loud noise are two of the most common causes of sensorineural hearing loss.
Is sign language difficult to learn?
Sign language shot to prominence after the actress, Rose Ayling-Ellis, won the popular BBC dance show Strictly Come Dancing in 2021. Her dance partner and the judges began to use sign language, and the show inspired a whole new generation to take up the challenge of learning sign language. However, it does require application and patience to learn correctly and is more complicated than it looks.
Is there a National Institute for advice on impaired hearing?
The RNID is the national charity for hearing compromise. Formerly called 'Action on Hearing Loss,' the charity reverted to its original name in 2020. There is lots of helpful advice, information and signposting for further assitance.
Does the coronavirus vaccination cause Sensorineural hearing loss?
The World Health Organisation has been examining a small number of reported cases of auditory issues and tinnitus following the Covid-19 vaccination. Combined numbers were less than 500 people out of an administered 11 billion vaccine doses. The cases seemed to be linked to the Pfizer vaccine and were reported by the WHO as extremely rare.

Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on Health Times. Commissions do not affect our writers’ or editors’ opinions or evaluations. Read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Hearing problems conjure up images of hearing aids, and many of us would rather remain in denial than go down that road. However, we can manage hearing loss discreetly and effectively.

How many people over 50 suffer from hearing loss?

More than 40% of over 50s have some degree of hearing loss in the UK. This figure rises to more than 70% of people aged over 70. The medical term for age-related hearing loss is presbycusis.

There are also 7.1 million people living with tinnitus, which is a very unpleasant condition despite the absence of pain.

Tinnitus is a symptom of something wrong with the auditory system, which includes the ear, the auditory nerve that connects the inner ear to the brain, and the parts of the brain that process sound. An audiologist evaluates the condition to pinpoint the cause of tinnitus. Tinnitus manifests with a constant ringing or noise in the ears, varying from mild to deafening. It can be high pitched or low pitched and affect either ear or both.

Hearing loss doesn’t have to be age-related: there are many different types of hearing loss and hearing impairment. For example, sudden hearing loss can affect older adults and may result from something as simple as a build-up of earwax or nasty infections. The latter is a common cause of hearing loss in children.

Common causes of hearing loss in older adults

Hearing loss in older adults can have several causes, some of which are not confined to increasing years and can also cause hearing loss in children.

Modern living affects everyone's health, not just hearing, and impacts all ages. Common environmental impacts include loud sounds and even loud music. Every time we hear a loud noise, a few more tiny hair cells in the inner ear are damaged or die. This is called noise-induced hearing loss. Sounds at or below 70 decibels are generally considered safe. Environmental noise is often related to the workplace but not always. The use of headphones amongst young people is a cause for concern amongst healthcare professionals. The World Health Organization states that over a billion young adults are at risk due to unsafe listening practices.

Stress is another factor that is very damaging to our bodies. Still, not many people realise stress can also impact hearing. The tiny hair cells in the cochlea, in the inner ear, require a good supply of blood which carries oxygen and other nutrients to ensure the ear mechanism remains healthy. Stress causes the blood vessels in the body to constrict and narrow, restricting blood flow, damaging the minute capillaries, and starting the process of hearing impairment.

Medication is another known risk factor for hearing loss. Ototoxic drugs are medications used to treat another condition with side effects that can cause lack of hearing, dizziness and loss of balance. Some people are more at risk of suffering problems with ototoxic drugs than others, including:

The elderly
People who already have some degree of compromised hearing
Those with a hereditary predisposition

It is always important to give feedback on any changes in hearing to your doctor if you have started medication or changed medicines recently.

Other factors which cause hearing loss in older adults

Hearing loss can be caused by something temporary and be short-term and treatable. It doesn’t have to be environmentally based or an inevitable consequence of just getting older.

Ear infections can cause temporary hearing impairment or sudden hearing loss. This is usually quickly resolved with a diagnosis and, sometimes, antibiotics. Sudden hearing loss can also occur after a loud noise or a rapid change in ear pressure, such as on a flight; this can lead to a perforated eardrum.

A build-up of earwax in the ear canal can, over time, interfere with hearing. This can be tricky to identify as hearing can vary and come and go as the earwax moves around. However, there are plenty of clinics which offer earwax removal.

There are conditions like Ménière's Disease, an inner ear disease characterised by loss of balance and bouts of vertigo. This illness can be associated with sudden hearing loss and even permanent hearing loss. Bacterial meningitis can also cause hearing problems and lead to anything from mild to profound hearing loss.

Some hearing loss conditions can be hereditary. These include otosclerosis, which causes the formation of new bone around the base of the stapes, a middle ear bone, and can result in progressive hearing loss.

How to identify the cause of hearing loss

Start by consulting your doctor, who will go through your recent medical history to determine whether this is a low-grade long-term problem or something that has occurred relatively recently, like an ear infection. Your doctor may refer you to the audiology department at your local hospital for a hearing test. An audiologist will use different techniques to grade your hearing, including measuring your response to sound waves. Depending on the type of hearing loss and its severity, there are various options available to improve age-related hearing loss.

Managing hearing loss

Losing your hearing will not make you feel great about life, and treatment will depend upon whether you are experiencing severe or mild hearing loss. Different types of hearing loss generate different solutions, including which part of the ear is impacted and whether one or both ears are affected. A hearing test or audiologist assessment is required to determine the level and type of hearing impairment.

Matthew Allsop from Harley Street Hearing told Health Times: "It's typical for people to look after their eyes and have regular eye tests. However, that same trend hasn't followed on into the hearing loss world.

"It is so important that once hearing loss is identified it is managed, whether that is with medical intervention if it is something that can be remedied, or with hearing aids if it is a permanent type of hearing loss. On average, people wait around seven years from suspecting they have hearing loss or their family members telling them to get a hearing test until they have a hearing aid fitted.

"That's seven years of struggling unnecessarily. Hearing aid technology is different to what 99% of people think, both in terms of how they look and in terms of how they function, and with the right technology, you will not only improve hearing, but also improve energy levels, social interaction, and even delay the onset of cognitive decline."

Hearing aids

Modern hearing aids have developed hugely in the last few years. There are external aids which sit behind the ear and devices which insert inside the outer ear and look like earplugs. Some even fit directly into the ear canal. Different control options are available, including on-device adjustment and remote app-based management.

Conductive hearing loss is when sounds cannot penetrate the eardrum's outer and middle ear sections. As a result, sound becomes muffled, and background noise can interfere with the ability to hear soft sounds. Doctors can sometimes treat conductive hearing loss with medication or surgery.

Cochlear implants

Cochlear implants are electronic devices that partially restore hearing loss. It is helpful for people with severe hearing impairment or who are profoundly deaf with inner ear damage and who no longer get any support from conventional hearing aids. Cochlear implants bypass damaged sections of the ear and deliver sound signals directly to the auditory nerve.

Doctors can treat hearing impairment due to damage to the hearing nerve with corticosteroids. The hearing nerve is also called the cochlear nerve or the acoustic or auditory nerve.

Some people, irrespective of age, compensate for a degree of hearing loss by lip reading and reading facial expressions. This can often be unconscious to start with and is a technique used in noisy environments or where background noise can interfere with the ability to hear correctly.

Dealing with hearing loss in later life

Hearing loss can feel like an inevitability of growing older, but a reduction in quality of life isn't. Depending on the cause of hearing decline, there are many options available to restore what you hear so you can get on with enjoying your life.

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