Marriages suffer due to hearing loss

ST. LOUIS, April 30 (UPI) -- A U.S. survey of baby boomers indicates that 48 percent of the respondents feel that their marriages have suffered because of their spouses' hearing loss.

The survey, by Energizer Battery Inc. of men and women ages 44 to 62, said 65 percent of say they feel annoyed when their spouse cannot hear them, while 16 percent feel ignored and 8 percent feel sad or hurt.

More than half of the respondents say they talk louder so their spouse can hear them and 83 percent feel that if they do talk loud enough, it helps their spouse better understand what they are saying.

However, although 45 percent of respondents believe their spouse doesn't hear chore requests, 78 percent say their spouse can hear them fix a snack.

Of the boomers surveyed, 57 percent feel their spouse is reluctant to get his or her hearing checked and 46 percent feel that denial is the number one reason their significant other is hesitant to get his or her hearing checked.

The survey of 1,065 men and women, who have a spouse that suffers from hearing loss, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.