The numbers don’t lie: you will probably require hearing aids eventually. A report from NIDCD estimates that approximately a quarter of all individuals from 60 to 75 have some kind of loss of hearing, and that number goes up to 50% for those 75 and older. The best method to fight age-related loss of hearing is to use a hearing aid, but how can you discover which model is best for you? Advances in technology over the years have fixed some of the problems traditionally linked to hearing aids, including too much background noise and vulnerability to water damage. But to ensure that your choice of hearing aid is correct for you, there are still things you need to think about.
Pay Attention to Directionality
Directionality is one crucial function you should look for, which has the capability of keeping background noise down while focusing in on sound you want to hear such as conversations. Most hearing aids have different directionality systems, which either focus in on the sound directly in front of you, the speech that’s coming from different speakers, or a combination of both.
Will Your Hearing Aid Connect With Your Phone?
It’s become very clear, we’re addicted to our cellphone as a nation. Even if you don’t have a smartphone, it’s likely you have an old-style cell phone. And on the off-chance that you don’t have any type of cell phone, you most likely still have a land-line. So, how well hearing aid works with your phone is an important concern when you’re looking at hearing aids. How does it sound? Do voices sound sharp? Does it feel easy to wear? Are there any Bluetooth connection features available? When looking at new hearing aids, you should consider all of these.
Are You Inclined to Use it?
As mentioned above, hearing aid development has progressed tremendously over the past few years. One of those advances has been the size and shape of hearing aids, which are much smaller nowadays. However, there are always going to be some trade-offs. A smaller hearing aid might not be as powerful as a bigger one, so it really depends on your hearing professional’s suggestion and what you want to accomplish with your hearing aid. You can get a hearing aid that fits right in your ear canal and is all but invisible, but it won’t have many of the functions available in larger hearing aids and can sometimes be prone to earwax clogs. On the other side of it, a behind the ear hearing aid is larger and may be more noticeable, but often come with more directionality functions and have more options for sound amplification.
What Type of Background Sound Will You be Exposed to?
One of the biggest concerns since the advent of hearing aid technology has been wind noise and the chaos it causes to wearers. Being outside during a windy day with a traditional hearing aid once meant that you couldn’t hear anything but the wind, which is enough to drive anyone insane. you live in a windy place or if you’re an outdoor person so you’ll need to find a hearing aid that suppresses wind noise so you can have conversations at an average volume and avoid the headaches that are associated with hearing aid wind noises. Inform yourself about the many different hearing aid choices available to you. Get in touch with us.