Dementia is a condition that affects the brain. It can make it hard to remember things, think clearly, or take care of yourself.
Many older people around the world have dementia. There is no cure yet, but scientists are always looking for ways to slow it down or even stop it from happening.
One common problem for older people is hearing loss. Many don’t use hearing aids—sometimes because they cost too much or because they feel embarrassed to wear them. But now, researchers have found something very interesting: treating hearing loss might help prevent dementia.
A team of scientists in the United States, led by Professor Frank Lin at Johns Hopkins University, wanted to understand this connection better. They asked: Could using hearing aids slow down the brain’s decline in older adults? When the brain declines, it means people may forget things more often or find it harder to solve problems.
This was the first study of its kind. It lasted three years and involved nearly 1,000 older adults from different places in the U.S. The results were published in a respected science journal called The Lancet.
What did the researchers find? Well, using hearing aids didn’t seem to help everyone. But for older adults who were already at higher risk of dementia, treating hearing loss helped slow down the brain’s decline.
Hearing loss is very common in older age—two out of three people over 60 have it. But not many use hearing aids. In some poorer countries, fewer than one in ten people with hearing loss use them.
Scientists believe about 8% of all dementia cases around the world are linked to untreated hearing loss. That’s about 800,000 people each year!
Why might hearing loss lead to dementia? One idea is that the brain works harder to try and hear, which uses up energy that could be used for thinking. Another idea is that hearing loss may cause the brain to shrink faster. A third idea is that people with hearing loss may stop socializing, which means their brain isn’t getting enough stimulation.
In the study, the researchers split the participants into two groups. One group came from another long-term health study and had more health risks. The other group was healthier and volunteered to join the study. Some people in both groups got hearing aids and counseling. Others received general healthy aging tips but no hearing aids.
Overall, hearing aids didn’t help much in the healthier group. But in the group with more health risks, the hearing aids made a clear difference. Their brains declined more slowly compared to those who didn’t get hearing aids.
This discovery is exciting. It means that something as simple as a hearing aid could help protect the brain, especially in people already at risk of dementia. The researchers plan to continue studying this idea to learn even more.
This study supports past recommendations made by experts in 2020 and 2022. Those reports said treating age-related hearing loss could help reduce the number of dementia cases.
Of course, no study is perfect. In this one, the researchers knew which participants got hearing aids, which could have affected the results. Also, some of the brain tests involved sound, so people with hearing loss may have done worse simply because they couldn’t hear well.
Still, this study gives us hope. Treating hearing loss might be one small step toward solving a big problem like dementia.
If you care about dementia, please read studies about People who take high blood pressure medications have lower dementia risk and findings of Early indicators of dementia: 5 behaviour changes to look for after age 50.
For more about dementia, please read studies about Common drug for constipation is linked to higher dementia risk and findings of Scientists find link between heartburn drugs and increased dementia risk.
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