Can Hearing Loss Cause Falls? The Balance Connection

If you’ve spent a football Saturday near Toomer’s Corner in Auburn, you know how busy it gets. People are heading toward campus, stopping outside the shops or catching up with friends along the way.

You might weave around a group or step aside to let someone pass. It’s all routine, and you probably aren’t thinking about your balance while you’re doing it.

Hearing probably doesn’t come to mind when you think about balance, either. Most of us think of them as separate things, but researchers have found a connection between hearing loss and falls.

It’s a topic that might surprise you, especially if you’ve never discussed balance during a hearing appointment. So, what does your hearing have to do with staying steady on your feet?

How the Ear Supports Your Sense of Balance

Inside your inner ear, several small structures are responsible for keeping track of movement and balance. Three fluid-filled canals sense when you turn your head, while two other structures detect movement in a straight line.

Those two structures, called the utricle and saccule, also register your head’s position in relation to gravity. Even a simple movement like bending down involves information from this part of your ear.

Your brain combines these signals with information from your eyes and the muscles and joints throughout your body. When you turn your head while walking, a reflex involving your inner ear keeps your vision steady.

You can continue looking at something ahead without your surroundings appearing to move with every movement. Although hearing and balance structures share the inner ear, each performs a different function.

Common Reasons for Hearing Loss and How They Affect Balance

Hearing loss can happen for different reasons, and not all of them involve your sense of balance. Some conditions affect both hearing and balance, while others involve only the parts of your ear responsible for hearing.

Common reasons are:

• • Getting older: Hearing and balance can both change with age, although you might experience changes in one without noticing anything different in the other.
  • Meniere’s disease: This inner ear condition can cause hearing changes along with episodes of vertigo, where you feel like you’re spinning.
  • Inner ear infections: Labyrinthitis can affect both hearing and balance. You may experience dizziness along with changes in your hearing.
  • Loud noise: Years of exposure to loud sounds can damage your hearing, but that doesn’t necessarily mean your balance will change.
  • Earwax buildup: Too much wax can temporarily block sound, although it generally doesn’t interfere with the organs that control balance.

Why Older Adults Often Have More Trouble with Balance

Your body may take a little longer to adjust when you shift your weight or change direction. These differences aren’t the same for everyone, and they don’t necessarily happen at a particular age.

How much you move during the day is part of it, too. If you’re spending more time sitting, you may not be using the muscles involved in balance as often.

Arthritis can make certain movements uncomfortable, while conditions such as diabetes may involve changes in sensation or coordination.

Your audiologist may ask about these things during a balance evaluation, along with any differences you’ve noticed in your usual activities.

The Impact of Vision in Balance When Living with Hearing Loss

Your eyes do more than show you what’s around you. They also help you judge where to put your feet, how far away something is and whether the ground is level.

If you have hearing loss, you might find yourself looking around more often to see what’s happening nearby. This is especially common in busy places where you can’t always hear someone approaching.

Changes in eyesight can make certain situations trickier. Cataracts or blurry vision might leave you second-guessing the edge of a stair or a raised section of sidewalk.

People with both hearing and vision loss may also have a greater risk of falling. It’s a good idea to keep your glasses prescription current and have your eyes checked regularly.

At home, brighter lighting near stairs and keeping shoes or other belongings out of walkways are simple precautions.

How Medications Can Affect Hearing and Balance

Dizziness is listed as a side effect of quite a few medications, including some used for blood pressure and sleep problems. It doesn’t always feel the same, either. You might get lightheaded when you stand up or feel unsteady for a while after taking a dose.

Taking several prescriptions is another consideration, since they sometimes interact with each other.

There are also others that can damage the inner ear, including certain antibiotics, chemotherapy drugs and diuretics.

You may hear ringing that wasn’t there before or find that certain sounds seem muffled. Balance problems are possible with some of these drugs, too. The risk varies depending on which medication you’re taking, how much you take and how long you’re on it.

If you notice a change after starting a prescription, tell the clinician who prescribed it. They can review your medicines before you make any changes to how you take them.

What are the Effects of Background Noise on Balance When Living with Hearing Loss

Think about trying to hear someone talking while you’re walking through a crowded restaurant. There’s music playing and conversations happening at nearby tables.

With hearing loss, it may be harder to tell which direction a voice is coming from. You might hear someone speak but need to look around to figure out where they are.

There’s also the effort involved in listening when several sounds are competing for your attention. Following a conversation in that setting may take more concentration than it would in a quiet room.

You’re still walking around tables, avoiding other people and keeping track of where you’re going.

If you already have trouble with balance, handling all of that at once may feel more demanding. Background noise doesn’t directly cause balance problems, but it can add to what you’re managing in a busy place.

Warning Signs That Changes in Hearing May Affect Your Balance

Hearing and balance problems don’t always show up together, but sometimes you may notice changes in both around the same time. Pay attention to anything that feels different when you’re walking or moving around.

Some signs include:

• • Dizziness with hearing changes: Feeling dizzy around the same time you notice that sounds seem muffled or harder to hear.
  • Trouble walking in the dark: Reaching for a wall or railing more often when you can’t see the ground clearly.
  • Ringing in your ears: Hearing ringing or buzzing along with dizziness or trouble staying steady.
  • Feeling unsteady when turning: Losing your footing slightly or needing a moment to steady yourself after turning your head.
  • Spinning sensations: Feeling like the room is moving around you, even though you’re sitting or standing still.
  • Changes in one ear: Having trouble hearing on one side while also experiencing dizziness or balance problems.

Home Safety Steps That Lower Fall Risks for People with Hearing Loss

You may have walked around these things for years without giving them much thought. If your balance has changed, it’s a good time to rearrange anything that gets in your way.

Bathrooms are another place to look, particularly around the shower and toilet. Grab bars should be firmly attached to the wall, and a non-slip surface is useful where the floor gets wet.

On stairs, check for loose handrails and worn carpeting that could catch your foot. Lighting deserves attention as well, especially if you get up during the night.

With hearing loss, you can also use flashing or vibrating doorbell alerts instead of rushing to find out who’s at the door. Smoke alarms with visual or vibrating alerts are available, too.

Helpful Devices That Support Better Hearing and Steadier Movement

Hearing aids are worth discussing with your audiologist if you’re having trouble hearing conversations or sounds around you. Different models offer features like directional microphones, background noise reduction and phone connectivity.

You can also ask about remote microphones for situations where someone is speaking from across a room. Hearing aids don’t correct balance problems, so any trouble with dizziness or unsteadiness needs to be evaluated separately.

If you’re having trouble staying steady, a cane or walker may be appropriate. Canes come with different handles and bases, while walkers vary in size and the amount of support they offer.

Personal emergency alert devices are another consideration. Some are worn around the neck or wrist and have a button for calling assistance. Others include automatic fall detection.

Staying Safe and Balanced with Hearing Loss

You might not think about your balance much until you start feeling a little less steady than usual. Maybe you’ve caught yourself reaching for something to hold onto or taking more care on stairs.

You don’t have to wait until you’ve had a fall to talk about what’s going on.

At Hearing Professionals of Alabama, we can discuss your concerns and whether additional testing makes sense. Call our Auburn office at (334) 521-7501 or our Montgomery office at (334) 246-4289 to schedule an appointment.