The underlying basis of noise-induced hearing loss may seem well-founded. After all, the name itself conveys a fairly straightforward cause-and-effect relationship. Our fundamental understanding is that permanent hearing damage is caused by exposure to overly loud sound over a long period of time.
Though we’ve known this for some time now, we haven’t perfectly understood the inherent mechanisms behind it. That’s improving, thanks to emerging research into the role of zinc regulation after exposure to loud noises. Hearing loss and zinc management have an important link according to this research.
What is zinc? And how does it impact hearing loss?
Zinc is a mineral needed for executing necessary bodily functions and the majority of people have plenty of it. Healthy levels of zinc are linked to a well-functioning immune system and play a role in how well your brain translates chemical signals. In most cases, a person’s diet supplies enough zinc.
The connection between zinc and hearing loss might, at first glance, be difficult to identify. The connection between zinc and hearing isn’t, after all, immediately obvious. However, a novel experiment has shed some light on what’s going on.
Researchers exposed mice to loud sounds and performed a few analyses afterward. When exposed to loud noises, the same thing happens to mice as happens to humans: the fragile parts of the ear become damaged. For humans, sound will initially become temporarily muffled. As a person is regularly exposed to loud noise, this damage will become more extreme and lasting. This damage can’t be cured in either humans or mice.
Researchers also took blood samples from the mice and noticed some fascinating results in terms of free-floating zinc.
Does zinc help or cause hearing loss?
Because of this result, scientists now better understand how noise-related hearing loss symptoms occur. Usually, when zinc is in the body, it’s bound molecularly. During the experiment, researchers noticed that zinc became free-floating when the ears were subjected to loud noises and sound-related stresses. Zinc most likely behaves the same way in humans.
The free-floating zinc triggers damage to fragile parts of the inner ear that are crucial in order to hear clearly. This is the mechanism that scientists now think results in the kind of damage that causes noise-induced hearing loss.
How to treat hearing loss
As scientists gain a greater understanding of this, they might be able to formulate novel approaches to prevent hearing loss in people who are frequently exposed to loud noise. However, it may be some time before those developments become a viable reality. But that doesn’t mean your ears are defenseless.
So, you might be wondering: how can I prevent noise-related hearing loss?
There are several strategies you may utilize to protect your ears:
- Limit your exposure to loud noises: Sporting events, concerts, and jet engines come under this category. But most people would also be surprised to discover that everyday sounds like chatty offices, traffic, or lawnmowers can also lead to hearing damage.
- Regularly check in with your hearing specialist: Discovering damage as early as possible can help reduce long-term damage, and coming in to see us for a regular hearing test is the best way to do that.
- Wear hearing protection: Ear muffs and ear plugs can help your ears deal with loud settings that you can’t, or don’t want to stay away from. A set of earplugs can, for example, allow you to attend that loud concert and still be capable of hearing the music but also provide some protection against irreversible hearing loss.
Safeguard your ears by understanding causes
Can you cure noise-related hearing loss? Sadly no. Although you can effectively treat this form of hearing loss and any associated tinnitus, it has no cure. Better understanding the causes of hearing loss and the mechanisms by which hearing loss works can help hearing specialists (and you) develop better techniques and treatments designed to keep your hearing safe.
This research is likely just the first step in a longer undertaking. But every bit helps. Your direct role is to get your hearing tested and use ear protection.