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Hearing and Your Brain: Why a Hearing Check Belongs on Your To-Do List

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When we think about keeping our minds sharp, we usually picture crosswords, walks or a good night’s sleep. Our ears rarely make the list. Yet a growing body of research suggests that hearing well may be one of the more practical things we can do for memory and thinking as we age.

Hearing Loss Is Common, and It Creeps Up Quietly

According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, about one in three people in the U.S. between 65 and 74 has hearing loss, and nearly half of those older than 75 have difficulty hearing. Because it usually comes on gradually, many people don’t notice it at first; it can simply feel as if everyone else has started to mumble.

What the Research Says About Hearing and the Brain

In 2024, the Lancet Commission on dementia, a large international panel of experts, listed 14 risk factors that can be changed. Together, it estimated, tackling them could prevent or delay nearly half of dementia cases. Hearing loss was tied with high LDL cholesterol for the biggest share, linked to about 7% of cases worldwide. One of the Commission’s recommendations is simple: make hearing aids available to everyone with hearing loss, and cut down on harmful noise.

Researchers are still working out why the two might be connected. One idea is that sound itself keeps parts of the brain active. Another is that hearing better makes it easier to stay social and active, which may also benefit the brain.

A Closer Look at One Big Trial

The best test so far is the ACHIEVE study, a randomized trial at four U.S. sites. It followed 977 adults aged 70 to 84 with untreated hearing loss for three years. Half received hearing aids and counseling from an audiologist; the other half took part in a health education program.

Across the whole group, hearing care did not slow the decline in thinking skills. But among 238 volunteers who came from a long-running heart study and were at higher risk of cognitive decline, those who got hearing aids saw their thinking skills decline about 48% more slowly over three years.

The catch: that benefit showed up in a smaller subgroup, not the whole study, and the authors say it needs to be confirmed. Volunteers knew which group they were in, and the study lasted only three years. It does not prove that hearing aids prevent dementia. It does suggest that hearing care is worth taking seriously, especially for people at higher risk.

Simple Steps You Can Take

  1. Notice the signs. The National Institute on Aging suggests checking your hearing if you have trouble following group conversations or phone calls, often ask people to repeat themselves, or have the TV louder than others like it.
  2. Ask your doctor for a hearing check. Your family doctor can refer you to an audiologist or an ear, nose and throat specialist.
  3. Know your options. Since 2022, over-the-counter hearing aids have been sold in stores and online for adults with mild to moderate hearing loss. If they don’t help, see a hearing professional, since your loss may be more than mild. Before buying, check whether your insurance covers any of the cost.
  4. Treat sudden hearing loss as an emergency. If your hearing drops suddenly, see a doctor right away.
  5. Protect the hearing you have. Wear earplugs or earmuffs around loud equipment like lawn mowers, leaf blowers and woodworking tools, and keep headphone volume moderate.

Taking care of your hearing won’t solve everything, but it keeps you in the conversation, and the conversation is good for the brain, too. And when you’re ready for a little quiet focus, today’s puzzles are waiting in Word Puzzles.

This article is general information, not medical advice. If you notice changes in memory or thinking, talk to your doctor.

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