May 13, 2025
Anthony Camerlo/UNSPLASH.COM
Seniors who receive provided hearing aids develop more diverse social connections with family, friends and acquaintances, new research shows.
Providing hearing aids to seniors improves social connection and helps combat loneliness, according to a new study.
The research, published Monday, found that seniors who received hearing aids developed more diverse social connections with family, friends and acquaintances. They also were able to foster longer, deeper relationships than seniors who were not treated for hearing loss.
The findings are significant against the backdrop loneliness epidemic former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy warned about in 2023. About 1 in 3 adults ages 50 to 80 reported feeling isolated and a lack of companionship in a survey that year.
Loneliness has been linked to higher risk for cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, anxiety, depression and other health consequences.
Hearing loss can exacerbate feelings of loneliness and isolation among elderly people, according to the authors of the new study.
"Hearing intervention is a low-risk strategy that may help promote social connection among older adults," the researchers wrote.
Of the nearly 1,000 seniors who participated in the study – none of whom previously had any interventions for hearing loss – half received four sessions with an audiologist, hearing aids and counseling. The other half had four sessions with a health educator on chronic disease and disability prevention.
The group that received hearing aids retained an average of one additional social connection over three years compared to the group that did not receive hearing intervention.
The study's results support efforts to have the cost of hearing aids covered by Medicare, researchers said. Currently, people with Medicare must pay the full cost of fittings for hearing aids, exams and the hearing aids.
