How prevalent is hearing loss?
There’s a misconception that those with hearing loss are retirement-aged or older, but it’s actually much more common. In the most recent Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study on the prevalence of hearing loss, considering all degrees of hearing impairment, researchers estimated that 1.57 billion people globally had hearing loss in 2019. That accounts for one in five people. It’s not a problem that’ll go away either. With environmental factors and the continued growth of the aging population, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 2.5 billion people around the globe will have some degree of hearing loss by 2050.
While we know it’s an issue for many, what does the population of those with hearing impairment look like today?
Hearing impairment impacts all ages for different reasons
While 62% of all people with hearing loss are 50 years old and above, the GBD study we cited earlier reported that 70 million children between the ages of 0-15 suffer from some form of hearing loss. We know some of the reasons why hearing impairment is impacting more young people, but from a more global lens that considers lower and middle-income countries, the GDP paper and WHO agree that “60% of hearing loss in children is due to preventable causes such as ear infections and vaccine-preventable diseases.”
For adults, there are a multitude of reasons hearing deteriorates — inner ear structures and functions deteriorate with age, exposure to loud noise recreationally and due to occupation pose a threat, as does genetics. Just as the causes of hearing loss differ, so does the severity.
The range of severity varies
A paper published in 2016 by the National Center for Biotechnology Information used the WHO’s criteria to classify the severity of hearing loss and identified its prevalence. In the U.S., for people 12 years of age and older:
25.4 million suffered from mild hearing loss (defined as > 25 dB through 40 dB)
10.7 million suffered from moderate hearing loss (defined as > 40 dB through 60 dB)
1.8 million had severe hearing loss (defined as > 60 dB through 80 dB)
0.4 million suffered from profound hearing loss (defined as > 80 dB)
While not all hearing loss is preventable, impairment can be improved in some cases. Hearing aids and cochlear implants are important tools for those with moderate to profound hearing loss. Assistive technology, like our HeardThat app, can work with hearing devices to further improve hearing. If you or a loved one is having trouble hearing in a way that is impacting quality of life, please seek help from an audiologist. For those looking to improve hearing while holding conversations in noisy environments, like restaurants or grocery stores, try our HeardThat app, available on the App Store (iOS) and Google Play Store (Android).