Secondhand Smoke & Hearing Loss

Accordign to a report in the Archives of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, secondhand smoke is associated with increased risk of recurrent otitis media (commonly known as ear infections) and sensorineural hearing loss in adolescents. the study included 1,533 adolescents from 12 to 19 years of age who were interviewed about their health status and family medical history, exposure to secondhand smoke, and self-recognition of hearing impairment. They also underwent a physical examination, including blood testing for cotinine (a byproduct of nicotine exposure), and hearing tests.

Teens exposed to secondhand smoke exhibited higher rates of low and high-frequency hearing loss, and more than 80% of participants with hearing loss did not realize they had impairment.

Visit http://archotol.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/137/7/655

Just for FUN!

5% of Canadians don't know the first 7 words of the Canadian anthem, but know the first 9 of the American anthem.

---AND---

7% of Americans don't know the first 9 words of the American anthem, but know the first 7 of the Canadian anthem.

• A 10-gallon hat barely holds 6 pints.
• A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue.
• A "jiffy" is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second.
• All porcupines float in water.
• Actor Tommy Lee Jones and former vice-president Al Gore were freshman roommates at Harvard.
• A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds.
• A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.
• 56,000,000 people go to Major League baseball each year.

Cochlear Implant Seminars!

Cochlear Americas - a leading manufacturer of implantable hearing devices - is sponsoring a series of Hearing Health Seminars. 

The FREE Hearing Health Seminar is informative opportunity for people who have severe to profound hearing loss and struggle with their hearing aids to learn more about hearing treatment options.The Seminar includes:

- An exhibit hall where you can learn about local resources, obtain information on insurance coverage and talk with local physicians and audiologists.
- Captioned education sessions presented by local physicians and audiologists about hearing loss and advanced treatment options other than hearing aids.
- A lounge where you can meet cochlear implant and Baha users.

For more information go to www.HearingHealthSeminar.com or call 1-877-432-7844.

Seminars in our area will be:

     Detroit, MI on October 22

     Cincinnati, OH on November 12

There are several more location and dates on the schedule, contact above for more!

We at Kenwood Hearing Center also have a CD that we can lend to you with more information.

Statistics on Noise Induced Hearing Loss

• More than 30 million Americans are exposed to hazardous sound levels on a regular basis. (National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders)

• Of the 28 million Americans who have hearing loss, over one-third have been affected at least in part by noise. (ASHA)

• Excessive noise exposure is the most common cause of hearing loss. (American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery)

• Audiology experts agree that hearing loss in the United States is increasing. The number of Americans age 3 and older with some form of hearing disorder has more than doubled since 1971. (National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders)

• Noise-induced hearing loss affects people of all ages. U.S. government survey data revealed that 12.5% of children ages 6 to 19 (approximately 5.2 million children) have permanent damage to their ears' hair cells caused by exposure to loud noises. In addition 15.5% of children ages 12 to 19 had some hearing loss in one or both ears, highlighting the fact that noise-induced hearing loss grows more prevalent with age. (Niskar, 2001)

• Noise-induced hearing loss is also growing among baby boomers. Of the more than 75 million Americans born between 1945 and 1964, 20.4% or 16 million people have some degree of hearing loss. (National Center for Health Statistics)

What's your news?

Did you know that Kenwood Hearing Center sends out a quarterly newsletter?  Packed with information on the latest hearing aid technology, the happening in our office, current sales or promotions, as well as non-ear-related goodies and material.
Here is Jocelyn, one of our Audiologist's 17 month old daughter, reading our Fall 2011 newsletter to her Grandma.  (just nevermind that it's up-side-down!)

If you're not on our list to receive our newsletter, and you would like to be, just call our office toll-free at 1-877-534-3277 and we will happily add you to the list!

We Remember

Mediplacements - Hearing loss 'linked to brain atrophy in elderly'

"Lead author Jonathan Peelle said: "As hearing ability declines with age, interventions such as hearing aids should be considered not only to improve hearing but to preserve the brain."

For the full article:

Mediplacements - Hearing loss 'linked to brain atrophy in elderly'

The Important Stuff

Getting a hearing aid just might be included on the list of "important stuff" to do.

from Hearing Loss Magazine. Written by Penny Allen who lives in Port Orchard, Washington and is president of the Hearing Loss Association of Washington and editor of "Sound Waves," the state association newsletter. She wears a hearing aid and has a cochlear implant.

Desperate people frequently ask my why their parents of spouses won't "do something" about their hearing loss. You'd think I would know. 

What I do know is that people with untreated hearing loss are usually oblivious to what a burden they become to their families. And most families living with someone with untreated hearing loss don't grasp its seriousness. It's either "his problem" or "her problem," but rarely is it "our problem." Yet this apathy takes its toll. Communication barriers trigger psychological stress, confusion, anger, frustration, resentment, helplessness, etc. But it happens to the entire family! 

The longer someone puts off getting a hearing evaluation, the less likely getting hearing aids is going to happen. There are lists of reasons why people don't get hearing aids - fear, vanity, expense, misinformation - any of which might seem justified. But just as the person with a hearing loss adapts, so does the family. They become grudging enablers, taking charge and eventually easing him or her out of the picture for lack of involvement. Its' called marginalization, and it's inevitable. It's much like a family comping with an alcoholic family member who refuses treatment - life goes on. 

I grew up in such a family, and it was my father who refused help. We yelled a lot - at leas, we yelled at him. And hue usually yelled back because he was irritated we yelled at him. Watching TV was not about togetherness. The volume was so loud the rest of us scattered. Conversations were generally one-sided - if father's. If we got the chance to say something, we often had to repeat it even louder. Eventually we tired of the effort. But, ironically, we never discussed the elephant in the room, He was the father, after all. 

After my own hearing loss was diagnosed at the age of 40, I had an "AHA!" moment. I was sure I could convince my father of the merits of hearing aids. I couldn't. Over the years, he just sort of slipped away from me bit by bit. We had necessary talk but no small talk - the stuff that keeps you connected. He was preoccupied with solitary hobbies and had little contact with his children and grandchildren. I suspect we were all a bit lonely for the father and grandfather we should have had. 

Hearing loss requires attention - whether you are the person with the hearing loss of the family member who resides with it. Do something about it, and don't dally. Otherwise, you'll miss the important stuff. But the saddest part is you won't be the only one. 

What's that Buzzing?

The so-called mosquito ringtone is a Welsh security company's invention. It is a high-frequency sound that older adults can't hear because of presbycusis. Originally designed for shopkeepers to discourage teen loiterers, the sound was appropriated (allegedly by some enterprising students) and turned into a cell phone ringtone that adults can't hear - a useful feature in setting such as classrooms, where sending and receiving calls and text messages by cell phone is banned.

The ability to hear sounds above 8 kilohertz (kHz) diminishes with age, typically starting in your 40s. The mosquito ringtone is available at ranges between 16.7 and 22.4 kHz, which usually only people younger than age 24 can hear.


from Hearing Health Magazine, Summer 2011

Earwax Do's and Don'ts

DO:

• Nothing. Ideally, the ear canal creates and gradually ejects earwax from the ear.
• Wash the outside of the ear (but not the ear canal) with soap and water.
• If you have excessive earwax buildup, it may help to put a drop of olive oil or baby oil in your ear canal once a week.
• Use over-the-counter earwax removal kits only if your ear drum is intact.
• See your doctor if olive oil, baby oil, or removal kits are not successful in removing impacted earwax, or if you experience pain, increasing difficulty hearing, tinnitus or ringing in the ear, a feeling of itchiness, a discharge or odor from the ear, or dizziness.

DON'T:

• Put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear, including cotton swabs, keys, pen caps, bobby pins, paper clips, or toothpicks.
• Employ ear candling to remove earwax buildup. Studies have shown it to be ineffective and potentially dangerous to the ear canal.

World Alzheimer's Month

Did you know? September is World Alzheimer's Month.

Ten Warning Signs of Alzheimer's
1. Memory loss that disrupts daily life
2. Challenges in planning or solving problems
3. Difficulty completing familiar tasks at home, at work, or at leisure
4. Confusion with time or place
5. Trouble understanding visual images and spacial relationships
6. New problems with words in speaking or writing
7. Misplacing things and losing the ability to retrace steps.
8. Decreased or poor judgement
9. Withdrawal from work or social activities
10. Changes in mood and personality

Unpaid Caregivers and Stress

There are nearly 15 million Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers providing 17 billion hours of unpaid care valued at $202 billion. Facts and Figures finds that caregivers not only suffer emotionally but also physically. Because of the toll of caregiving on their own health, Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers had $7.9 billion in additional health care costs in 2010. More than 60 percent of family caregivers report high levels of stress because of the prolonged duration of caregiving and 33 percent report symptoms of depression.

Death from Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer’s is the sixth-leading cause of death in the country and the only cause of death among the top 10 in the United States that cannot be prevented, cured or even slowed. Based on mortality data from 2000-2008, death rates have declined for most major diseases while deaths from Alzheimer’s disease have risen 66 percent during the same period.


Alzheimer's Facts in Each State
The 2011 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures report also contains data on the impact of this disease in every state across the nation. Click below to see the effect that Alzheimer's is having in your state.