Diabetes Can Contribute to Hearing Loss

Hearing loss is a common problem in America today, with 44 million Americans being affected by it currently. We are all aware of many of the dangers that can lead to hearing loss, such as loud noises and aging, but did you know that hearing loss is also linked to diabetes?

Diabetes is a medical condition that inhibits insulin production in the body. The hormone known as insulin is created within the pancreas and is used to regulate the levels of blood glucose within the body. Insulin enables the glucose present in the blood to transfer into cells within the body that require energy. Food consumption usually triggers insulin to enable the nutrients from the food to reach the cells in your body that require replenishing.

The problem with diabetes is that it inhibits insulin production, which means that the cells in your body do not get the nutrients they need since the glucose from the blood remains in the blood rather than transferring to the cells in need. This can lead to massive malfunction within the organs of the body, which can cause heart attacks, stroke, and even kidney failure.

The two types of diabetes involve producing insulin in different ways. In type 1 diabetes, the body does not create any insulin whatsoever since the cells of the immune system attack and destroy the cells that generate the hormone. This requires taking insulin each day to ensure your body can function properly. Type 2 is more well-known since it is the most prevalent type of diabetes, and it can affect anyone at any point in their lifetime. In this type of diabetes, the body produces insufficient amounts of insulin that do not nourish your body cells efficiently.

Recent research from the National Institute of Health reported that those with any of the above forms of diabetes have a doubled risk of developing hearing loss. This occurs due to insufficient insulin that prevents nutrients from reaching the cells within the ears. Over time, these starved cells within the ears tend to deteriorate or can even die altogether, resulting in hearing loss.

If you or a loved one has diabetes, make sure you get your hearing tested once every year to rule out any potential hearing damage. Hearing loss is irreversible, and the earliest medical intervention provides the most promising results.