Hearing loss is common among older adults and has reported associations with a higher risk of dementia. Machado-Fragua et al. offer evidence that shows midlife hearing loss is modestly associated with a higher incidence of late-life dementia, and highlight considerations of duration of exposure, measurement, intervention timing and public health awareness for dementia risk reduction.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals
Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription
$32.99 / 30 days
cancel any time
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 digital issues and online access to articles
$119.00 per year
only $9.92 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on SpringerLink
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References
Reed, N. S. et al. JAMA Netw. Open 6, e2326320 (2023).
Liverman, C. T., Domnitz, S. & Blazer, D. G. Hearing Health Care for Adults: Priorities for Improving Access and Affordability (National Academies Press, 2016).
Powell, D. S., Oh, E. S., Reed, N. S., Lin, F. R. & Deal, J. A. Front. Aging Neurosci. 13, 769405 (2022).
Livingston, G. et al. Lancet 404, 572–628 (2024).
Machado-Fragua, M. D. et al. Nat. Aging https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-025-00914-1 (2025).
Huang, A. R., Jiang, K., Lin, F. R., Deal, J. A. & Reed, N. S. JAMA 329, 171–173 (2023).
Lin, F. R. et al. Arch. Neurol. 68, 214–220 (2011).
Deal, J. A. et al. J. Gerontol. Ser. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci. 72, 703–709 (2017).
Cabeza, R. et al. Nat. Rev. Neurosci. 19, 701–710 (2018).
Lin, F. R. & Albert, M. Aging Mental Health 18, 671–673 (2014).
Kamil, R. J., Genther, D. J. & Lin, F. R. Ear Hear. 36, 164–167 (2015).
Schliep, K. C. et al. Alzheimers Dement. 18, 1812–1823 (2022).
Reed, N. S. et al. Otol. Neurotol. 46, 743–747 (2025).
Lin, F. R. et al. Lancet 402, 786–797 (2023).
Acknowledgements
The authors thank K. Da Silva for their assistance and review.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
N.S.R. reports grants from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) while writing the article as well as service on the Neosensory scientific advisory board from 2021 to 2023. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Reed, N.S., Huang, A.R. & Coresh, J. Midlife hearing loss and dementia risk. Nat Aging 5, 1654–1656 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-025-00955-6
Published:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-025-00955-6