A Healthy Diet Can Lower the Risk of Hearing Loss

Hearing loss affects millions of people within the United States. It is a gradual condition that progresses as the person ages. This is also called presbycusis. The number of people affected by some level of hearing loss is extremely high, and some statistics calculate that as many as one-third of people from the ages of 65 to 75 experience it.

There are three distinctive types of hearing loss:

• The first is conductive: This is hearing loss that involves the organs of the outer or middle ear.
• The second is called sensorineural: This type of hearing loss involves organs within the inner ear.
• The third is a mixed kind of hearing loss: This can involve organs within both ears in any number of combinations.

Hearing Loss and Family Members

People close to a person suffering from hearing loss are often unaware of the problem at all. Even close relatives might not notice that the person isn’t hearing as well as before. There is also the tendency for people experiencing hearing loss to be unaware of the signals that indicate hearing loss occurred. For example, hearing loss can take place in three distinctive registers.

The first is the low-frequency range that is around 2kHz. The mid-frequencies are around 4kHz, and 8kHz and above are considered to be high-frequency ranges. Reductions in hearing loss in the mid and high frequencies can be as high as 30 percent, according to one study.

Treatment for Hearing Loss

The good news is that a huge portion of this hearing loss can be prevented through changes to the diet and general lifestyle. This includes adding plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables into the diet. Significant research also shows that adding some fish into the diet helps to reduce the amount of hearing loss experienced in old age.

Nutrients and Vitamins Assist Hearing Health

Vitamins and nutrition play a key role in maintaining the health of various parts of the body, and this includes the auditory system. Hearing loss tends to be worse in people who maintain an unhealthy diet over long periods of time. Maintaining a healthy diet and taking vitamins won't cure hearing loss once it’s already taking place. However, adopting healthy practices can reduce the severity of the loss and improve your overall health, so be persistent.

Vitamin B-9 has been linked to hearing loss since a 1999 study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, which established a connection between folate, or vitamin B-9, and hearing loss. This substance can be ingested through the diet in the form of spinach, beans, broccoli, nuts and eggs. In addition, you can add vitamin B12 to your diet to assist in preventing hearing loss. This is best taken in a sublingual, liquid form especially for vegetarians. However, you can also ingest this vitamin through various dairy products, meat and fish.

Omega-3 fatty acids are extremely beneficial, and they’ve made a significant impression on health-conscious people through well-earned publicity. However, too many people fail to ensure that they get sufficient amounts of omega-3 fatty acids in the diet. Foods that are high in omega-3 fatty acids should be integrated into the diet in order to provide the most benefit. Wild salmon, sardines and flaxseed oil are high in omega-3 fatty acids. You can also get it from walnuts, pastured eggs, grass-fed lamb or beef and even in supplemental forms.

Preventing Hearing Loss

Prevention can also include making basic lifestyle changes to your daily routine. This includes reducing the amount of loud noises you are exposed to on a daily basis, for example. Exposure to loud sounds in combination with a diet that lacks nutrition can starve your body of what it needs to maintain the functioning of the different parts of the ear. This manifests as hearing loss, so it’s important to take proactive steps to keep it from developing. Make dietary changes gradually by introducing each healthy item as a replacement for something that contains sugar, salt or fat. Adopt each new practice into your life gradually and consistently. This gets better results than trying to change a lot of different habits at the same time.