4 Ways To Protect Your Hearing with Diabetes

We hear a lot about the complications of high blood sugar.  Retinopathy that leads to blindness, neuropathy that leads to amputation in the feet. Nephropathy which is kidney damage, can lead to dialysis. Now this is only if your blood sugar is not controlled.

What we don't hear much about is the impact of diabetes on our hearing. What causes hearing loss? Well, obviously being exposed to loud noise. I grew up in the sixties, so I was exposed to a good amount of it, but people who work at the airport or in some manufacturing situations where there's a lot of loud noise all the time can damage hearing.  Also, getting older, because it's cumulative hearing loss is cumulative.   Some medications can affect your hearing. And, of course, diabetes.

Hearing loss is twice as common in people who have diabetes as other people in the same age group who do not have diabetes. The scary part is that people who have pre-diabetes, this is when you might have had a blood test to say, yes, you're on the verge of diabetes or you are not even aware that you have diabetes. These people have a 30% higher rate of hearing loss than people who don't have pre-diabetes.

What are some of the signs of hearing loss? These are going to be familiar to many of you:  Asking people to speak up, asking you to repeat what you just said, not being able to follow a conversation, particularly in a loud space, like a restaurant where there's a lot of noise and or music, turning the TV up really loud and accusing people of mumbling. Now make no mistake. A lot of people do mumble, but not everybody. So the question really is, what do we do about it?

First thing, get your blood sugar checked at your doctors to see if you have pre-diabetes.  Next, make sure your blood sugar is under control and as best you can keep it there. It makes a huge difference.

Second, get your hearing checked every year. Start when you're first diagnosed with diabetes or as soon as you can.  It is so important to stay on top of it.

Third, limit, manage or avoid loud noise.  I go to a group training program four times a week and they play really loud music.  I'm getting some earplugs to use to reduce the damage that loud music is doing to my ears.

Finally, check with your doctor to see if there are any medications you're taking that affect your hearing. There are some medications that can destroy your hearing and even your balance, Gentamicin (an antibiotic) is one of them.  You definitely want to check if there's any issues there and what alternative medications might be possible.

Not being able to hear and participate in life can be very isolating. I encourage you to do everything you can to keep your diabetes in control so you can avoid that problem.

I have a free 30 day guide that you can sign up for on the link below. That will give you some ideas of where to start to get control your diabetes. Please download that.

I also invite you to sign up for a diabetes assessment call, which is an opportunity for us to talk about what your situation and what resources I might have available and what I can do to support you. The link for that is below as well.

Thank you so much for listening.

Dr. Elaine

Download my free 30 Day Guide to Manage or Reverse Type 2 Diabetes 

Schedule a Free Diabetes Assessment Call

This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the medical advice of your doctor or healthcare provider. Please consult your healthcare provider for advice about a specific medical condition.

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