Childhood illnesses have an impact on the health of adults. The ear infections repeated children should be well monitored and cared for. But they should also encourage adults affected by these infections to regularly consult an ENT, according to the results of a study published in the medical journal Ear end Hearin. Indeed, they are often the cause of deafness in adulthood.
The Newcastle Thousand Families Study followed the health journey of 1,142 children from birth in 1947 to the present day. With all the data collected, the researchers were able to assess the health status of the participants over the long term and correlate some health problems with others. In particular the impact of childhood illnesses on the health of adults.
Researchers at Newcastle University’s Institute of Health and Society tested the hearing of 67-year-old adults. They found that people with severe hearing problems were often prone to infections, such as ear infections and tonsillitis.
“Reducing childhood infections could therefore help prevent hearing loss later on,” explains Mark Pearce, doctor of epidemiology and co-author of the study.
“Especially since hearing loss can have a big impact on a person’s life. It can isolate them from family, friends and the workplace. And, it is often linked to other health problems like depression and dementia ”. “The results of this study remind us that it is never too early to think about protecting your hearing”, concludes the researcher.
In France, there are an estimated 5 million hearing impaired. However, one in two French people never have their hearing. Yet hearing loss does not only affect the elderly. And children and adolescents who are used to listening to music at high volume through headphones are also at risk.
“Hearing disorders are invisible and very often hidden from oneself by compensation mechanisms which create fatigue, nervous wear and which end up being dangerous as they can generate loss of cognitive and social stimulation” recalls the association La National Hearing Day (JNA).
