Dr Hilary Jones: Ageing a major factor in hearing loss

Often with medical conditions, such as hearing loss, those who suffer from them are only aware of the symptoms rather than the cause.

When it comes to deafness, the main cause often comes down to ageing and general wear and tear of the ears.

Specifically though, some of the finer cells which cover tissues within the inner ear are gradually lost, making it much more difficult to capture sounds of a higher frequency.

This, in turn, can make conversation difficult, even with people close to you and especially in louder environments and complex situations.

However, Dr Hilary Jones, a GP and medical broadcaster, has recently said, hearing loss is by no means the be-all and end-all for people.

Backing up our opinions, he said there are some very good treatments out there for people who are finding they're losing their hearing.

"We have an ageing population, so as we get older, we tend to get some loss of hearing, with diminishing youth, as a natural process," he said.

"We do have treatments available. People don't have to wait the average 15 years they are currently waiting to get help."

Quite right too, with Leightons we deal with everything quickly and efficiently from the first free hearing test to the fitting of the hearing aid or any other device we recommend.

In terms of other problems causing hearing loss within the UK, he said it was a case of the usual suspects.

"Younger people are enjoying their personal stereos, their MP3s, iPods and they are playing them at volumes which do cause some acoustic damage," he explained.

"People go to rock concerts, some babies are born with deafness, perhaps infection in the womb."

If you do have any concerns about your hearing then remember we're only a phone call away and we can even come to your house for a test.

So, either pop into a Leightons branch or give us a call.