Over the years, hearing aids have had a stigma. Some people simply correlate them with aging. What is the result?
Many people, both old and young, decide against hearing aids and suffer unnecessarily from hearing loss, which is actually linked to numerous health problems. The numbers reinforce this: 30 million people in the US dealing with hearing loss, yet only around 15 percent of that group has ever worn a hearing aid.
Also, an increasing number of young people are addressing hearing loss: a WHO report from 2015 forecasted that 1.1 billion teens and young adults would damage their hearing permanently due to over the top use of headphones and extremely loud music festivals.
However, progressing technology and changing perceptions have started to frame hearing aids in a new light, and people are beginning to look at them in a similar way they look at eye-glasses.
If You Need Hearing Aids, You Should Use Them, This Is Why
There are a ton of reasons why wearing hearing aids is a good idea, some of them obvious and some of them unexpected.
Some of the most common reasons are as follows:
- You can reduce tinnitus symptoms
- You won’t struggle as much having conversations
- One of the obvious reasons is that you can hear better
- Social activities will be more satisfying
- You’ll give your brain a break
- You can listen to television and music at safe volumes
- You’ll raise your earning power
Do these seem like good reasons to you? Even someone with minor hearing damage can get some benefit from using hearing aids.
What many people don’t know is that hearing loss is associated with mental decline, mental health issues, and conditions like dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
This could happen for a number of different reasons according to recent studies, this includes the overworking of the brain as it struggles to comprehend sounds that it hears. It might be that the brain cells don’t receive enough activation so they shrink and die, or it could be due to the number one cause of anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues which is social isolation.
Hearing aids can change things for the better by permitting you to hear clearly and comprehend the words and sounds near you. Your brain won’t need to utilize additional resources and will be capable of processing sounds in a standard way, while you’ll gain the ability and confidence to enjoy social activities and conversations again.
Technological Advances in Hearing Aids
We told you why it’s important for anyone with hearing loss, old or young, to use hearing aids. Now it’s time to find out how hearing aids have progressed in the past few years.
The cumbersome, over-the-ear hearing aids are still out there for the people who want them. They perform their function effectively and have advanced to the point where the majority of them have no problem filtering out background noises like wind or determining what direction sound comes from. Conversely, there are more modern versions of hearing aids that are virtually unnoticeable, yet pack quite a bit of technology to fit in with today’s digital world.
Would you like to connect your hearing aid to your smartphone, tablet, television, or even your car’s GPS? Then you’re in luck since the majority of modern hearing aids have Bluetooth technology that permits them to sync with a range of devices. There are even higher-end models that can stream music, track your physical activity, and automatically take and make phone calls for you. Hearing aids nowadays are designed to do more – much like your smartwatch and smartphone, smart hearing aids will come to be a must-have accessory for anyone suffering from hearing loss. So now that you are ready to deal with your hearing loss and begin using a hearing aid, consult with us for an appointment and hearing assessment.
