Question: My 69-year-old father is generally healthy, except for some logical ailments due to his age. But for about 3 years we have noticed that he listens less, he seeks to be alone and what worries us the most is that he is very forgetful. We will appreciate any advice
.
JEE, from Chivilcoy
In recent decades there has been
an increase in life expectancy in the world, with a higher proportion in adults over 60 years of age.
This is accompanied by an increase in pathologies in which aging is the main risk factor –such as dementia– which profoundly affect the quality of life of people and their families and have an impact on the costs of the health system.
Dementia is a
highly prevalent pathology that causes serious potential consequences both for the person who suffers from it and for the people around them.
With the aging of the population, its prevalence will continue to increase.
The connection between hearing loss and brain damage is because the more stimulated the brain is, the more agile it remains.
Photo Shutterstock.
risk factors
The important thing –according to a study published in the journal
Lancet–
is that
35% of the total risk factors that influence the development of dementia are modifiable
: arterial hypertension, diabetes, obesity, smoking, sedentary lifestyle, depression, social isolation .
For all the disorders mentioned, the first approach to prevent them is
to treat cardiovascular risk factors, perform physical activity on a regular basis
, maintain a balanced diet and have a good night's sleep.
In this context, a new risk factor today is decreased hearing or hearing loss.
Its causes can be very varied, but, basically, it can be due to a disorder of the external auditory canal
(the most common, a wax plug), of the middle ear (chronic otitis) or of the inner ear (acoustic trauma).
In older adults, age-related hearing loss is called “presbycusis”.
It is evidenced as a decrease in hearing capacity, sometimes bilateral
and sometimes progressive, which prevents listening well, especially in front of several interlocutors and in a noisy environment.
It is advisable to have your hearing checked by a specialist.
Photo Shutterstock.
The connection between hearing loss and brain deterioration is attributed to the fact that the more stimulated the brain is, the more vitalized, agile and active it remains.
Hearing loss implies less activity in the brain region responsible for hearing
which, in turn, as it belongs to and functions in a neural network, may end up affecting the centers linked to memory.
In addition,
those who listen little or badly tend to isolate themselves.
One of the best ways to stimulate and sustain healthy brain function is to maintain social ties because the evolution of the human brain was for socialization.
Dementia is a highly prevalent pathology that causes serious potential consequences both for the person who suffers from it and for the people around them.
With the aging of the population, its prevalence will continue to increase.
Norberto Abdala, psychiatrist
In the US nearly 1 in 4 people age 12 and older have hearing loss in at least one ear and 1 in 7 have bilateral hearing loss.
Hearing loss is most common among older adults
, with two-thirds of people aged 70 and over having bilateral hearing loss and nearly three-quarters having hearing loss in at least one ear.
Hearing loss is more prevalent among men than women:
an estimated one-third of men aged 40 and over have hearing loss
, compared to one-fifth of women.
Hence
the importance of consulting a specialist for hearing loss
, in addition to the treatment that the psychiatrist or neurologist may indicate.
MS
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