![\"Beers\"](\"https:\/\/eoent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/alcohol.jpeg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nSoundwaves are translated into electrical impulses within the inner ear and sent via the auditory nerve to the auditory cortex, which is the region of the brain that processes sound. Even if your ears are functioning properly, a problem in the brain can lead to hearing loss<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n A team of German researchers at the University of Ulm published a study<\/a> connecting heavy drinking over a long period of time to damage in the central auditory cortex. This damage caused the brain to take longer to process sounds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Participants in this study had trouble hearing people who spoke quickly or distinguishing one voice from another in an environment with heavy background noise. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Heavy drinking can create a toxic\nenvironment in the inner ear, which contains the hair cells responsible for\ntranslating soundwaves into electrical impulses. The toxic environment destroys\nthe hair cells, leading to permanent hearing loss. <\/p>\n\n\n\n A study of young adults in London<\/a> found that those who drank alcohol had a harder time understanding low frequency sounds. This condition has come to be known as \u201ccocktail deadness.\u201d The participants\u2019 hearing would return to normal once they stopped drinking, but researchers hypothesize that frequent episodes of binge drinking can lead to permanent damage to the inner ear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The inner ear is\nresponsible for both hearing and balance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Alcohol is absorbed into the fluid of the inner ear, changing the volume and composition of the fluid. Since the inner ear is responsible for determining your position in space, any change can cause vertigo and feelings of dizziness and imbalance<\/a>. This is why many people experience a spinning sensation after a night of heavy drinking. <\/p>\n\n\n\nAlcohol\u2019s Effect on\nHearing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Can Alcohol Cause\nImbalance? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n