Alcohol Causes Hearing Loss & Tinnitus
Drinking alcohol in moderation is unlikely to cause many issues with hearing, but heavy drinking has been linked to hearing issues and a ringing in the ears (tinnitus).
Below, you will find the cause of this hearing loss, what to look out for and how to protect your hearing.
The Wider Issue
The sense of hearing a sound in the brain comes from a signal in the inner ear, which in turn is provided vibrations from the ear drum.
Heavy drinking has been known to damage brain cells for a long time now, but a recent study has found that the central auditory cortex is also damaged. This means that sounds will take longer to be processed: Someone speaking quickly may not sound clear, or multiple sounds at the same time (background noise).
Cocktail Deafness
Excessive drinking in young adults has been found to affect their hearing in a recent study, and this was therefore called Cocktail Deafness. Hearing always returned to normal the next day, though.
The study may have been based on a certain age group, but this affects everyone.
Long-term Heavy Drinking
With hearing returning to normal the next day, many are dismissive about any lasting damage they may be doing.
However, many studies over the years around the world have found that those regularly indulging in heavy drinking are 35% more likely to develop hearing loss.
Drinking, Dizziness and Tinnitus
Most can remember the feeling of being dizzy after a night out at some point. This is because alcohol changes the way fluid acts in the ear, where your sense of balance is located.
This is why a night of drinking can cause ‘the spins’.
Tinnitus is caused by alcohol enlarging blood vessels in the ear to increase the flow. While usually temporary, there is a concern that this could be permanent with prolonged alcohol abuse as discussed earlier.
Conclusion
If you are experiencing tinnitus and/or hearing loss, then a hearing test from a highly qualified audiologist will provide the guidance you need.
Regular heavy drinking may be the cause and a good place to start if you’re concerned about your hearing. With a whole host of physical and mental health benefits from reduced alcohol intake, we could all do with re-assessing our relationship with alcohol.
