Why hearing health is linked to brain health: Andrew Armitage
Listening has become tiring for many people who come into my practice. They are not just struggling to hear; a meeting, a family meal or a busy restaurant can leave them worn out, even when they have followed what was said.
This tells us something important that hearing care can no longer be only about the ears – it’s also about how the brain makes sense of sound.
In audiology, we talk about listening effort and cognitive load. Put simply, when speech is unclear, especially with background noise, the brain has to work harder to fill in gaps, shut out distractions and keep pace with conversation. Over time, that can be draining, which is why people often say they feel exhausted by situations they once took in their stride.
That is why I believe hearing health and brain health should be talked about together. Untreated hearing difficulties can affect more than whether somebody catches every word. It can knock confidence, make social situations harder and increase the effort needed to stay engaged. I think hearing sits much closer to our wider wellbeing than many people realise.
At The Yorkshire Hearing Clinic, that shift is there in the conversations we have every week. People are not only asking whether they can hear a tone in a quiet room, but they also want to know why keeping up with conversation takes more effort than it used to. Good hearing care has to reflect real life, not just what happens in a test booth.
One part of that wider picture is the use of tools such as Cognivue, an FDA-cleared digital cognitive assessment platform used as an adjunctive aid in evaluating cognitive function. What interests me is that, in the right clinical hands, tools like this add useful context. They move us away from the idea that one test result tells the whole story.
Used properly within hearing care, that kind of insight can help us shape support around the individual. If somebody tells me they can hear sounds but still cannot cope with noise, I need to understand more than their hearing thresholds.
Processing speed, attention and memory may all play a part. The more clearly we understand that, the better we can guide people.
I am also interested in tools that help people strengthen listening skills in everyday situations. Lace AI Pro, for example, is an auditory training programme focusing on speech in noise, rapid speech, working memory and communication confidence through short exercises. I do not see that as replacing proper assessment, but as part of a more rounded approach which recognises that better hearing is not only about what the ear picks up, but what the brain can do with it.
For me, that is where hearing care needs to go next. A more joined-up approach gives us a better chance of educating patients, tailoring support properly and improving outcomes over time.
Just as importantly, it helps people understand that if listening feels harder than it once did, they should not simply get on with it. It may be a sign that hearing and brain health need looking at together.
That, I believe, is the future of audiology: not simply helping people hear a bit more clearly, but helping them stay connected, confident and fully involved in everyday life.
Andrew Armitage is Clinical Director for The Yorkshire Hearing Clinic