The Total Hearing Care Difference

When Silence Creeps In: The Hidden Connection Between Hearing Aids and Cognitive Function

• Dr. Jill Copley • Episode 3

Share episode

How Do I Know If I Need A Hearing Aid and How Will That Affect Brain Health?

Struggling to hear conversations at restaurants? Constantly turning up the TV volume? These aren't just minor inconveniences—they could be early warning signs of hearing loss that directly impacts your brain health.

The connection between hearing and brain function runs deeper than most realize. As Dr. Jill Copley explains, our ears collect sound, but it's our brains that process and make meaning from what we hear. When hearing loss goes untreated, our brains work overtime trying to fill in the gaps, creating cognitive strain that research now links to accelerated cognitive decline and dementia risk.

What makes this relationship particularly concerning is its bidirectional nature. Those with hearing loss show more signs of cognitive processing issues, while people with cognitive challenges often experience more severe hearing loss. This creates a potentially dangerous cycle that early intervention can help interrupt. Quality hearing aids don't just amplify sound—they train your brain by providing clear, organized information that supports healthy cognitive function.

Ready to protect both your hearing and brain health? Contact Total Hearing Care at calling or visiting online to schedule a comprehensive evaluation. Remember, treating hearing loss early isn't just about better communication—it's an investment in your cognitive future. When you hear better, you truly live better.

To learn more about Total Hearing Care visit:
https://www.TotalHearingCare.com
Total Hearing Care
Multiple Locations Across the DFW Metroplex
469-218-4853

Speaker 1:

Welcome to the Total Hearing Care Difference where we help you experience life through better hearing. Hosted by the experts at Total Hearing Care, a leading private audiology practice serving the DFW Metroplex, we're here to provide guidance on hearing loss, tinnitus and the latest advancements in audiology. Transform your life through better hearing. Let's get started.

Speaker 2:

Is your hearing slipping or is everyone actually mumbling? Knowing when to consider a hearing aid isn't always obvious, but the connection between hearing and brain health is very real. In this episode, we break down the signs that it might be time to explore hearing aids, and how to keep your ears sharp can help keep your brain sharp too. Welcome back everyone. I'm Sophia Yvette, co-host slash producer, back in the studio with Dr Jill Copley. Dr Copley, how's it going today? It's going great.

Speaker 3:

Thank you, Sophia. I'm glad to be here.

Speaker 2:

Well, we're glad to have you on. So, dr Copley, how do I know if I need a hearing aid and how will that affect brain health?

Speaker 3:

So there is a lot to unpack in that question.

Speaker 3:

I think the first thing is to look at how you're understanding other people in your life.

Speaker 3:

Let's say you go to a restaurant and your wife tells you hey, you didn't hear the waiter or you're not understanding me.

Speaker 3:

That is speech understanding and background noise, and that's one of the first symptoms people notice about their hearing is it becomes more difficult to hear at a restaurant, at a party, at a gathering. The other thing you might notice is that people are telling you you're turning the TV up too loud and it needs to be louder for you than it does for them. One of the other things you might notice is that someone might tell you that you're speaking loudly on the phone, that you're having to yell because maybe you're not hearing as well, and you notice that. I'm saying that others might notice this. Typically, others around you will notice that you're not hearing well before you even do, will notice that you're not hearing well before you even do. The other thing that I think patients have told me is if they are working, they notice that they're not hearing as well in conferences or at staff meetings and they're having to ask people what, or they miss things altogether.

Speaker 2:

Now, how does untreated hearing loss impact cognitive function overall?

Speaker 3:

When we do our testing, we look at how the sound goes through your ears, but what really happens is, once the sound goes through your ears, it gets to your brain. The brain is actually what does the processing. So we have to look closely at not only what we call the hearing, but also how you're cognitively processing that information.

Speaker 2:

Are there specific types of hearing aids that are better for brain health?

Speaker 3:

So we want to find what we call our standard of care for people. Those devices are going to give you the best information about your environment. They're going to help you the best in background noise because, as I've said, I've mentioned background noise several times that's typically where people want to hear most is when they're with family or when they're at restaurants, and so we want the best for people to get that information to the brain. Now what cognitively affects us I'll just make an aside here is we know from recent research in the past 15 years or so there's been a lot of long-term and large studies that people with hearing loss tend to show more signs of cognitive processing issues, and people with cognitive processing issues and people with cognitive processing issues also show more signs of more severe hearing loss. So the two go together and we wanna make sure and do our part to help people alleviate some of those cognitive issues that they might be having due to their hearing.

Speaker 2:

So, dr Copley, if I turn up the TV loud enough to shake the windows, that sounds like a clue, isn't it?

Speaker 3:

Yes, definitely, definitely. Anytime you're having to turn things up much louder than what other people might need, that's definitely a clue that you should come in and have a hearing test and let us look at things Now. As I mentioned, other people in your life may notice that you have problems hearing. Before you do, it's important that you bring that person with you to the appointment, because we want to get their input and understand what they're going through, as well as your input. The hearing loss affects not only you but the people around you, and we want to make sure those important people are involved in your treatment and in the decision you get hearing aids.

Speaker 2:

So, Dr Copley, I'm sure listeners are curious how do we know it's a hearing issue and not a focus issue?

Speaker 3:

So we are able to do a cognitive screening that looks at focus and attention and that can give us an idea of whether you're having some difficulty with focus. This is a screening, is not diagnostic, and I want to make sure people know that we're not diagnosing any kind of issue such as dementia, but we can see how you're processing and how you're focusing. We also do a lot of counseling and sometimes we can figure out that a person isn't focusing and maybe that's because they can't hear. When you can't hear, you tend to zone out and not pay as much attention. So again, there's so many things that can go together with hearing loss to cause people to notice that they're not doing well.

Speaker 2:

Any final words of wisdom when it comes to hearing aids and brain health.

Speaker 3:

It's very important that we treat the brain and hearing aids. People think that hearing aids are just treating the ears, but they're really training the brain. They're giving information, good information, to the brain and, as I said, research shows that they are very connected hearing loss, cognitive issues and dementia and nobody wants to deal with cognitive issues or dementia, and so using the hearing instruments research has shown can really slow down the progression of symptoms in those areas, and so it's incredibly important to treat your hearing. It's much easier to treat your hearing when we're first noticing it than to go down the road and start to have those cognitive issues.

Speaker 2:

Love it. Dr Copley, We'll catch you on the next episode. Have a fantastic rest of your day.

Speaker 3:

Thank you so much.

Speaker 1:

You too. Thank you for listening to the Total Hearing Care Difference. If you're in the DFW Metroplex and ready to take the next step toward better hearing, if you're in the DFW Metroplex and ready to take the next step toward better hearing, call 469-218-4853 to book an appointment or visit TotalHearingCarecom, because when you hear better, you live better. See you next time.