Happy New Year and it is time to begin again! Promises are made to get a better job, get out of debt, and break all of those pesky bad habits. There are also promises to eat healthier, lose weight, and to exercise. If your resolution is to be healthier in 2016, don’t forget to have your hearing checked by your Southfield audiologist. No matter how young you are, your family history, or your overall health, getting your hearing tested is a crucial part of your well-being. Nearly 35 million Americans suffer from some degree of hearing loss, but many people take an average of seven to 10 years to have their hearing checked. Here are just a few reasons to head your Southfield audiologist or hearing specialist today:

1. Hearing loss is more common than you think: Some people think hearing loss only affects elderly individuals or people who have had constant exposure to loud noises. However, hearing loss symptoms can affect people off all ages and may be so subtle that family, friends, and co-workers may notice your hearing loss before you do.

2. Your hearing allows you to connect and communicate with people every single day. Avoid the unnecessary stress that occurs when you have to guess or ask others to repeat because you did not understand the conversation.

3. Untreated hearing loss can cause and accelerate other physical and emotional health problems. Being unable to hear your family or friends at social functions can lead to depression and isolation. A study at http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/ John Hopkins University found that people with mild hearing loss are twice as likely to experience symptoms of dementia; however, further research is required to determine why they are correlated. One theory is that since hearing loss symptoms can lead to isolation, it can cause cognitive decline.

4. Hearing loss can be unsafe: Someone with a hearing loss may not be able to hear the sound of a car horn, the siren of an emergency vehicle, or a smoke alarm when sleeping.

5. Loss of income: Hearing loss can create issues in the workplace when you are unable to understand your boss, hear at meetings and on conference calls. The Better Hearing Institute reports than an individual who has untreated hearing loss may earn up to $30,000 less annually. 

6. Hearing loss can put stress on relationships: Frustration may occur when you always ask others to repeat, or if you did not get the joke, or you give an embarrassing answer to a question. When you take care of your hearing, you are telling your loved ones you care about them. 

7. Hearing is like muscle; if you don’t use it, you may lose it: With untreated hearing loss, the nerve that carries sound from the ear to the brain (as well as the part of the brain that understands speech) is not getting used like it was when the hearing was normal. The longer this occurs, the harder it is to understand speech and the less success we have with hearing aids or other forms of treatment for hearing loss. 

8. Hearing screenings are quick and painless: Hearing screenings are complimentary hear at Platinum hearing. That does not mean that there are not more thorough kinds of testing that can be done, it’s just that you don’t have to have those done unless the screening suggest that you do.

9. Hearing aids are better than ever: They are cosmetically appealing, have better hearing in noise, and can connect to your cell phone, TV and more.
10. The hearing loss you perceive may just be wax!