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.

Tips to Avoid Hearing Loss

From Dr. Sanjay Gupta

Everyone has done it: You need some momentum on the treadmill, so you crank up your iPod. Or you turn up your car stereo when you drive by a loud construction site or your favorite song comes on and then forget to turn it back down. It might sound obvious but exposing yourself to loud noises for a prolonged period of time may irreversibly damage your hearing. Your body can hear thanks to hair cells inside your ears that transform sound energy into electrical signals. Those signals get sent to your brain. Excessive sound energy damages those hair cells, eventually causing them to die. Our bodies don't regenerate new hair cells and the louder the noise, the more damage that can be done to them.

Here are a few tips to keep your hearing sharp.

TURN IT DOWN At maximum volume, the average MP3 player blares at an ear-splitting115 decibels. Compare that to the noise a power saw makes at about 110 decibels. The American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery says it only takes 100 decibels of sound for
15 minutes to cause permanent hearing damage. If someone an arm's length away can hear what is coming through your headphones, turn the volume down by at least 30 percent. You can also adjust the volume settings on your computer to 60 percent.

CANCEL OUT THE NOISE If you need to use headphones, noise-canceling headphones are a better option. When you block out background noise, it's easier to focus on what you're listening to. You'll find yourself turning up the volume a lot less. Background noise isn't something people often pay attention to, but a person's risk for hearing loss increases depending on how much background noise they are exposed to.

TAKE A BREAK How long you spend listening to a loud noise may also affect your hearing. Continually listening to loud music or being in a loud environment without ear protection for several hours may increase your risk of damage. Give your ears a break: wear ear protection or ear plugs, try to retreat to a quieter location for a few minutes every hour, and pause your music at least once every 90 minutes.

The main point to remember is that loud noise from any source, whether it's your car stereo or a power tool, for a prolonged period of time, will degenerate your hearing.

A new reason for hearing loss: Motorcycle Helmets

While we won't advocate not wearing your motorcycle helmet because of this, recent studies have found that they may be contributing to hearing loss.

While the roar of a motorcycle engine is loud, after scientists mapped the airflow over the riders' helmets, it was found that the biggest source of noise for motorcyclists is actually generated by AIR!  That air whooshing over the riders' heads can exceed safe levels even at legal speeds.

Now, scientists have identified a key source of the rushing din. Researchers from the University of Bath and Bath Spa University placed motorcycle helmets atop mannequin heads, mounted them in a wind tunnel and turned on the fans. By placing microphones at different locations aruond the helmet and at the mannequins' ear, the researchers found that an area underneath the helmet and near the chin bar is a significant sourse of noise that reaches the rider's sensitive eardrums. 

The team also investigated how helmet angle and wind speech affected the ludness. Future tests will move beyond the wind tunnel to real-life riders on the open road...findings may one day be used to design quieter helmets, saving riders' ears for the enjoyment of hard biker rock.  :)

So, while Kenwood is in the business of ears and hearing, we find it important to share this information with you - however we still choose protecting the brain with that helmet for now!

Source: The American Institute of Physics

Hearing Loss and Depression

from Healthy Hearing

Hearing professionals have long believed that there's a relationship between hearing loss and the onset or worsening of depression in some of their patients. A recent study from Australia indicates there may be an increased risk of the life-sapping effects of depression among those who have experienced hearing loss, or seen their hearing loss worsen.

"When left untreated, hearing loss often leads to isolation, depression, and other emotional conditions that can affect both mental health and quality of life," says Sergei Kochkin, PhD, executive director of The Better Hearing Institute. "Yet, hearing loss remains one of the most commonly unaddressed health conditions in America today."

It's Lonely in There

Even people with mild hearing loss begin to experience increasing levels of isolation. As the world fades to a muffle, those with more severe degrees of hearing loss experience even greater degrees of isolation according to the Australian report.

Once-engaged individuals withdraw. The stigma of hearing loss and the choice to not use hearing aids prevents these social people from getting out, seeing friends or even enjoying a nice dinner.

Depression and hearing loss often create a downward spiral. Isolation leads to depression which, in turn, leads to more isolation and so on until the depression is debilitating. Severely depressed people live life day to day. They're less focused, less productive, less engaged in the world and, simply, people with severe depression are unable to enjoy all that life has to offer.

Hearing Loss and the Family

Untreated hearing loss affects not only the individual but the entire family

The psychological effects of hearing loss aren't limited to the person experiencing loss of hearing.

Far from it.

The residual effects of hearing loss spread to all members of the household, to friends, co-workers – the individual's entire "social network." Things just aren't the same when friends have to shout to be heard or have to repeat everything they say. Sometimes twice!

So, many with hearing loss withdraw. They pull back from supportive family members who are "only trying to help." They don't answer the telephone because they can't hear the speaker. Another social outing missed, perhaps.

Hearing loss affects both individuals and their friends and family. It's a stress factor for all, adding strain to even the best, most stable relationships.

Are You Ready For Solutions?

Sure, we all know about hearing aids but not many of us know about hearing aid technology.

Today's hearing aids are low-profile (or totally, tricked-out), they're automated, they provide grade-A sound, they're comfortable to wear and, face it, they put you back in the game.

These are NOT your grand-dad's hearing aids. Hearing aids, today, are tuned by a professional on computer software to address specific hearing loss. They're available in wireless so your hearing aids become receivers for all wireless communications and, voila, you're connected by cell phone again. Linkage is always nice.

If, in fact, you have experienced hearing loss (no one knows better than you) and you feel isolated from family, friends and the TV, are you depressed? Do you spend more and more time "inside" yourself and less and less time engaging life – the external world?

10 simple questions:

• Do you avoid talking on the phone? Let the machine get it?
• Have you had trouble hearing in large, open spaces?
• Do you have trouble hearing in loud restaurants? Do you avoid eating out as a result?
• Do others complain about the loudness of the TV?
• Do you have trouble hearing co-workers on the job?
• Do you still enjoy music the way you once did?
• Do you miss the sounds of life, from birds in the trees to a soft whisper from a loved one?
• Do you become more depressed when hearing loss causes a "problem?"
• Do you think there's a stigma associated with wearing hearing aids?
• Are hearing aids associated with your self-image and self-esteem?

If you answered yes to any of these, you can make things better – and soon. But the first step is yours; the ball is in your court.

If you or a loved one live with untreated hearing loss, call us at 419-534-3111 – and eliminate a common source of stress and depression. You don't have to live with hearing loss anymore.