Research examined how sounds affects a person’s ability to keep their balance while standing still, with their eyes closed and when standing on a pliable, squishy surface. They also looked at how wearing noise-canceling headphones (a complete lack of sound) affected balance. They found that people had more difficulty staying balanced or standing still on an uneven surface when it was quiet, and had better balance while listening to sounds.

Other research has shown that people with even a mild degree of hearing loss are three times more likely to have a bad fall than someone of the same age who has no hearing loss.

This means that your sound environment provides information that helps you balance yourself. Lack of sound (i.e., hearing loss) can affect your balance.