Bad news for boomers, good news for hearing aid manufacturers: A survey by The Ear Foundation finds that more American baby boomers than previously thought are losing their hearing, with nearly half the total of those aged 50 to 59 reporting some degree of hearing loss. A 1990 National Health Interview Survey by the National Center for Health Statistics found that only 20 percent in a comparable group were suffering from hearing loss. Further, the new survey found that more boomer men (55 percent) than women (44 percent) are suffering early hearing loss. Most respondents attributed their hearing loss to work- and recreation-related environmental noise. But only a third of those who said they are hearing impaired said they had ever gotten their hearing tested. NOTE: The Ear Foundation is backed by a manufacturer, Clarity, a division of Plantronics, Inc. that makes amplified phones for hearing-impaired consumers. The non-profit foundation does independent research that supports all the hearing manufacturers’ efforts to increase awareness of the need for their products.