sensory integration. Similar damage to
these regions can be seen in patients with
Alzheimer’s disease.
Other risks
For the estimated ;; million Americans with some degree of hearing impairment, there are other byproducts of
hearing loss. An NIDCD study in ;;;;
indicated adults age ;; to ;; with hearing
loss were nearly twice as likely to su;er
from moderate to severe depression as
those with normal hearing.
Other studies have shown adults ;;
and older with untreated hearing loss were
more likely to experience depression, sad
feelings, anxiety and social isolation. An
increased risk of falls also has been associated with hearing impairment.
Protecting your hearing
Causes of hearing loss include age,
genetics, injury, certain chemotherapy
drugs and antibiotics, as well as chronic
diseases such as diabetes, kidney disease
and cardiovascular disease. Yet one of the
main culprits of hearing loss—noise exposure—is preventable.
LISTEN UP
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 73
SOUND CHECK
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 73
Many hearing experts advise wearing hearing protection when one is
around even moderate to loud sounds—
leaf blowers, lawn mowers, vacuum
cleaners—for long periods of time. If you
can’t turn down or walk away from a loud
sound, experts advise wearing hearing
protection. C
Andrea Downing Peck is a freelance writer
from Bainbridge Island, Washington.
“People will say, ‘I can hear fine. You
just are not speaking clearly.’ That is
what hearing loss is,” explains Dr. Frank
Lin, associate professor of geriatric
medicine and otolaryngology at Johns
Hopkins University School of Medicine.
“When you have hearing loss, it means
your ear can no longer send sound
clearly to your brain. Your brain is still
getting a sound from your ear, but
instead of being crystal clear, it sounds
garbled. It sounds like the person is
mumbling at you.”
Solutions include hearing aids, ampli-
fication devices and, in cases of pro-
found hearing loss, cochlear implants.
If you have concerns, it never hurts
to get a baseline evaluation, because
many times you don’t notice hearing
loss but other people do. Studies have
shown that people tend to wait a long
time before they do something. They
could benefit from a hearing aid, but
they wait, and the longer one waits, the
harder it is to adapt to new technology.—ADP
If you can’t turn
down or walk
away from a
[loud] sound,
you should be
wearing hearing
protection.
Look for the Mark
USP verifies what’s
on the label is
precisely what’s
inside the bottle.
www.USPverified.org
USP has tested and verified ingredients, potency and manufacturing process.
USP sets o;cial standards for dietary supplements. See www.USPverified.org.
USP Verified.
Tested and True.
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Item #926628 ( 1,000 mg), #240669 ( 1,200 mg)
