The link between dementia and hearing loss: Dr. Frank Lin of Johns Hopkins' Cochlear Center

It’s well-established that hearing loss becomes more common as we age. One in 3 adults aged 65-74 suffers from hearing loss. After age 75, about half report trouble hearing. But what may be surprising is the link between hearing loss and dementia. Dr. Frank Lin is the director of the Cochlear Center for Hearing and Public Health at Johns Hopkins University. His research established that hearing loss is a risk factor for developing dementia and cognitive decline in older adults.  One reason for the link may be the idea of "cognitive load." "We forget when we hear what we're doing right now for instance, is it happens in two steps. The ear has to take in a sound, it has to convert that sound with perfect fidelity into a signal that then goes to the brain. The brain has to decode the signal...If the brain is not getting a clear sound, the brain is constantly having to work harder to process that sound," Lin said. In short, "the brain has less energy to dedicate toward thinking, toward memory, to doing other stuff," he said.  Lin then wondered if hearing aids actually slow down cognitive problems. In a multi-year study following thousands of participants, one group was assigned to wear hearing aids and the other half did not.  There was not much change in cognitive function between the two groups as a whole. However, when researchers looked specifically at participants who had high risk factors for dementia, the use of hearing aids slowed down cognitive decline by 48 percent.  "Hearing loss is incredibly consequential for our health," Lin said. "Even though it seems like just the usual process of aging, we're learning increasingly, it's not without consequence. And that's really the novelty of it, because until now, it was like, well, it's just getting older doesn't really matter." #features #fullframecgtn Watch CGTN LIVE on your computer, tablet or mobile https://cgtnamerica.vhx.tv/videos/hd-live-broadcasts Subscribe to CGTN America on YouTube Follow CGTN America: Twitter: @cgtnamerica Facebook: @cgtnamerica Instagram: @cgtnamerica TikTok: @newstoks This material is distributed by MediaLinks TV, LLC on behalf of CCTV. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.