The businessman's "problem"? Hearing loss.

"The guy told me he had been too vain in the past to do something about his problem, but when it cost him $1 million — that was the critical incident for him," said Sergei Kochkin, executive director of the Better Hearing Institute in Alexandria, Va.

Kochkin has heard many similar stories from people too embarrassed or too vain — or in too much denial — to admit they have trouble hearing. But in a recent survey by Kochkin of 6,000 people with hearing loss, he has estimated that Americans today who ignore their hearing problem — even a mild problem that misses a letter here or there — are losing at least $100 billion a year in earnings.

Cost can be great

Kochkin launched his investigation into the cost of hearing loss on incomes after working on a survey several years ago on aging Americans.

"What struck me was the untreated hearing loss in daily life," he said. "It impacted every facet of a person's life. People may be thinking that hearing loss is a mild inconvenience, when in fact, it's brutal."

Kochkin said hearing loss in the workplace does not just affect older workers. He notes that many have suffered some hearing impairment since they were children, and enter the workplace with a distinct disadvantage in this age of high-speed communication.

"There's embarrassment and a social stigma associated with hearing loss, and people believe they are good at hiding it," he said. "That's why it's so important we need to break down the myth that hearing loss is something bad."

The survey found that the average amount of income lost by workers who don't get hearing aids ranges from $1,000 a year to $12,000 a year, depending on the amount of hearing loss. However, getting hearing aids at a younger age reduces the chance of losing that income, important for the one out of six baby boomers who have hearing loss, and the one out of 14 Generation Xers who have the problem.

"When they seem out of touch because they can't hear, other people may incorrectly believe they are stupid," Kochkin said. "In effect, the untreated hearing loss ends up being much more noticeable than modern hearing devices in their ears."

The survey also found that currently more than 24 million people with admitted hearing loss do not use hearing aids in the U.S. The No. 1 reason for not using a hearing aid appears to be because of the possible stigma or misinformation about who can benefit from hearing aids, followed by the questioned value of such aids.

By Anita Bruzzese
http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051106/COLUMNISTS01/511060447