In the past, hearing aids have carried a stigma. Some people simply correlate them with getting old. The consequences?
Many people, both old and young, decide against hearing aids and suffer needlessly from hearing loss, which itself is connected to numerous health concerns. This is backed up by the numbers: 30 million people in the US suffering from hearing loss, yet only about 15 percent of that population has ever used a hearing aid.
In addition, the youth are suffering from hearing loss in greater numbers than ever before: a WHO report from 2015 forecasted that excessive use of headphones and overly loud concert events and festivals will cause over 1.1 billion teens and young adults to permanently damage their hearing.
Still, advancing technology and shifting attitudes have started to frame hearing aids in a new light, and people are starting to look at them in a similar way they view eye-glasses.
If You Require Hearing Aids, You Should Use Them, Here’s Why
There are a lots of reasons why you should use hearing aids, some of them are surprising and some are obvious.
Here are a few of the most common reasons:
- You can reduce tinnitus symptoms
- You can listen to television and music at safe volumes
- You’ll raise your earning power
- You can appreciate social activities and situations again
- You won’t struggle as much in conversations
- You’ll give your brain a rest
- You’re able to hear better (As noted, there were some obvious ones on the list)
Are these reasons sounding beneficial to you? Some benefit can be gained by wearing hearing aids even for people with slight hearing loss.
What many people aren’t aware of is that hearing loss is connected to cognitive decline, mental health issues, and conditions such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
This could happen for several different reasons as reported by research, including that the brain becomes overtaxed and overtired because it’s always striving to comprehend sounds. It’s possible that the brain cells shrink and die because they don’t receive enough stimulus, or it could be related to social isolation, which is a leading cause of depression, anxiety, and other mental health problems.
Hearing aids can change things for the better by permitting you to hear clearly and comprehend the words and sounds around you. Your brain won’t need to use extra resources and will be capable of processing sounds in a standard way, while you will start to enjoy conversations and social experiences again because you will gain more confidence.
Technological Developments in Hearing Aids
We told you why it’s essential for anybody with hearing loss, young or old, to use hearing aids. Now it’s time to discover how hearing aids have advanced in the past few years.
If really think you would like one of those big over the ear hearing aids, you can still buy one. They also have advanced to the point that they can figure out where sound is originating from and can filter out sound effectively. Conversely, there are new and improved versions of hearing aids that have advanced technology which makes it easy for them to work with today’s digital environment and are almost invisible.
Is connecting your hearing aids to your Bluetooth devices such as your television, cellphone, or tablet something you would like to do? Most modern hearing aids have Bluetooth technology so you’re in luck. There are even higher-end versions keep track of your physical health, take calls for you, stream music. Smart hearing aids are becoming a must for anyone who has hearing impairment because much like your smartphone or smartwatch, they’re just designed to do more. So now that you are ready to deal with your hearing loss and start wearing a hearing aid, consult with us for an appointment and hearing assessment.