Thyroid problems can affect your life considerably. In some cases, they can even be life-threatening.
Any kind of thyroid imbalance can affect your health. Having too much or too little of this hormone is dangerous.
It can lead to abnormal growth, weight changes and fatigue. In adulthood, it also affects the health of your skin and your hair. Furthermore, children with thyroid imbalances frequently have problems in their cognitive development.
But how else does the thyroid hormone affect us? New research shows that some thyroid problems cause hearing loss too. Let’s look into the key points of this finding.
How Thyroid Problems Cause Hearing Loss
Researchers from Tel Aviv University found a new cause of hearing problems.
They used image sounding on a group of mice. Some of the mice were deaf since birth. What did the scientists discover?
Deaf mice had a slightly altered structure in their inner ear. This change developed due to low thyroid levels. After all, low hormone levels have an impact on your normal growth.
Thus, low thyroid levels are connected with a mutation that leads to deafness. So what does this mean when it comes to treatment possibilities?
Future Research Directions
It isn’t easy to treat thyroid problems. However, this discovery gives scientists something to work with.
The next step of research is observing people who are born with hearing loss. Are their thyroid levels lower than average? Could this be why their development is different than other people’s?
A Final Word
We don’t know all the facts yet about this connection. However, the breakthrough is extremely important. Hormone changes could be the cause of hearing loss in both children and adults.
