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The Correlation between Cardiovascular Health and Hearing Health

Did you know there is a correlation between our cardiovascular health and our hearing health?  This correlation goes in both directions.  Cardiovascular problems can lead to hearing loss and hearing loss can lead to cardiovascular issues.

I consider the cochlea to be the most delicate organ in our body. It is encapsulated in the hardest bone in our body, the mastoid bone. If your parents told you that you were hard-headed, now you know why.  Your head has the hardest bone in the body.  The cochlea, a snail-shaped organ of hearing which contains thousands of hair cells used to translate sound into nerve impulses for the brain to interpret, is extremely sensitive to blood flow.  Disruption of the blood flow to the cochlea frequently results in permanent diminished hearing sensitivity, commonly known as nerve deafness. Without healthy blood flow hair cells die quickly.  The cochlea is so sensitive to blood flow that any disruption of that flow throughout the body often can be observed in the cochlea sooner than other parts of the body. Hearing loss can be early warnings of cardiovascular disease or other cardiovascular issues specifically low frequency hearing loss.

Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of people in the United States and hearing loss is the number one chronic health issue left untreated in the United States. Listen to your heart; have your hearing checked annually.