… Your hearing. <\/strong><\/p>\nIf you’ve ever come home from a dinner out feeling completely wiped out \u2014 not because the food or company was bad, but because you spent the whole night straining to catch every word \u2014 this episode is for you.<\/p>\n
Dr. A explains why hearing loss isn’t just about things getting quieter. It’s cognitively expensive, pulling resources away from your memory, balance, and coordination.<\/p>\n
He breaks down what’s actually happening inside your ear, why hearing loss is linked to falls and even dementia risk, and gives you a simple five-question self-test you can run tonight.<\/p>\n
Then he closes with real, practical nutrition and lifestyle strategies \u2014 think omega-3s, folate-rich foods, and protecting your ears from everyday noise \u2014 so you can preserve your hearing (and your independence) for decades to come.<\/p>\n
Rate & Review<\/strong> \u2013 If this episode opened your eyes to something you’ve never been taught before, please take a moment to rate and review the Fit Mother Project Podcast. Your review helps more women over 40 find practical, empowering health information that can genuinely change their lives.<\/p>\nJoin the Fit Mother Community<\/strong> \u2013 If you want support putting these ideas into action \u2014 alongside real coaching, structured programs, and women who are doing this work right beside you \u2014 come join Fit Mother For Life.<\/p>\n
\nFit Mother Project Key Takeaways:<\/b><\/h2>\n\n- Hearing loss is the default trajectory of the human body<\/strong> \u2014 not a condition only “unlucky” people get. By age 65\u201374, 1 in 3 adults has it; by 75+, it’s nearly half.<\/li>\n
- Listening is cognitively expensive.<\/strong> When sound is degraded, your brain has to work harder to reconstruct words, pulling resources away from memory, attention, and balance.<\/li>\n
- A 25-decibel hearing loss<\/strong> (mild impairment) was associated with nearly 3x higher odds of falling in the past year \u2014 and every additional 10-decibel loss raised that risk further.<\/li>\n
- Age-related hearing loss<\/strong> (presbycusis) happens when tiny hair cells in your inner ear (the cochlea) wear down \u2014 and unlike birds and fish, humans cannot regenerate them.<\/li>\n
- High frequencies go first<\/strong>, which is why consonants (s, f, th, k) blur before vowels do \u2014 this is the “I can hear you, I just can’t understand you” phenomenon.<\/li>\n
- The decibel scale is logarithmic.<\/strong> A concert or earbuds at full volume (100\u2013110 dB) is only safe for about 15 minutes \u2014 that’s the same ear damage as 8 hours of mowing the lawn.<\/li>\n
- A 2024 Lancet Commission study<\/strong> found hearing loss was the single largest modifiable risk factor for dementia out of 14 factors studied \u2014 more than diabetes or cardiovascular disease.<\/li>\n
- Run the “restaurant test” tonight:<\/strong> if you answer yes to two or more of five simple questions (missing words, watching mouths, feeling drained after socializing, etc.), it’s time for a baseline audiogram.<\/li>\n
- Cardiovascular health protects your hearing<\/strong> \u2014 the inner ear’s blood supply has no backup, so strength training, blood sugar control, and blood pressure management all matter.<\/li>\n
- Specific nutrients help:<\/strong> folate (B9) from lentils, chickpeas, and leafy greens, and omega-3s from fish like wild salmon were both linked to improved hearing outcomes in research studies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Blind Spots Series: Age Related Hearing Loss (Ep. 209)<\/h2>\n