Are You Suffering from Hearing Loss?

What's that you said? Having trouble hearing? You aren't the only one. A new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine has found that one in five Americans age 12 or older has a hearing loss that is bad enough to interfere with their ability to communicate with others.

The study used data from the National Health and Nutritional Examination surveys and found that hearing loss nearly doubles with every decade of age. Women and blacks are less likely to suffer from hearing loss than white men although researchers don't know why.

Hearing loss is especially frustrating because you feel like you are missing out on life as you struggle to understand what's going on around you, especially in situations with a lot of background noise like a crowded restaurant.

As you get older, you should guard against exposing your ears to overly loud noises. Here are some tips from The Menopause Book on how to reduce your exposure to noise:

·      Don't crank up the volume on the TV, radio or stereo.

·      Wear earplugs when performing noisy chores like mowing the lawn.

·      Watch out for the volume on your cell phone, which projects sound directly into the  ear canal.

·      Run the dishwasher when you're out of the kitchen.