Over the years, hearing aids have carried a stigma. If you use one, people may think of you as old. The effect?
Many people of every age put themselves at risk from numerous health concerns because they decide not to get hearing aids and decide to live with hearing loss. This is backed up by the numbers: 30 million people in the United States dealing with hearing loss, yet only about 15 percent of that group has ever worn a hearing aid.
At the same time, an increasing number of young people are dealing with hearing loss: a WHO report from 2015 forecasted that 1.1 billion teens and young adults would damage their hearing irreparably due to over the top use of headphones and extremely loud music events.
However, shifting attitudes and sophisticated technology have given hearing aids a new outlook, and soon they’ll be in the same category as eye-glasses – and contact lenses, for that matter.
Why Should You Wear Hearing Aids
There are a lots of reasons why wearing hearing aids is a smart idea, some of them obvious and some of them unexpected.
Here are a few of the most common reasons:
- You’re brain won’t have to work so hard
- You can enjoy social activities and settings again
- You can minimize tinnitus symptoms
- You’ll raise your earning power
- You won’t struggle as much having conversations
- One of the obvious factors is that you will be able to hear better
- You won’t have to crank the music or TV up
Are these reasons sounding good to you? Some advantage can be gained by wearing hearing aids even for people with slight hearing loss.
What many people don’t know is that hearing loss is linked to cognitive decline, mental health issues, and conditions such as Alzheimers disease and dementia.
This could occur for a number of different reasons based on recent studies, this involves the overworking of the brain as it struggles to understand sounds that it hears. It could be that the brain cells don’t receive enough activation so they shrink and die, or it may be linked to social isolation, which is a leading cause of depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues.
Hearing aids can change things for the better by letting you hear clearly and understand the words and sounds near you. Your brain won’t have to make use of extra resources and will be able to process sounds in a normal way, while you’ll gain the ability and confidence to enjoy social activities and conversations again.
Hearing Aids Have Developed in Sophistication
We told you why it’s important for anybody with hearing loss, young or old, to wear hearing aids. Now we’re going to tell you about the how; as in, how hearing aid technology has progressed to the point where they’re nothing like your grandparents’ hearing aids.
If really want one of those big over the ear hearing aids, you can still get one. They do their task acceptably and have advanced to the point where the majority of them don’t have a problem filtering out background sounds such as wind or determining what direction sound comes from. However, there are new and improved versions of hearing aids that are almost invisible, yet pack a lot of technology to fit in with today’s digital environment.
Do you want to sync your hearing aid to your smartphone, tablet, tv, or even your car’s navigation system? Most contemporary hearing aids have Bluetooth technology so you’re in luck. There are even higher-end versions keep track of your physical health, stream music, and take calls for you. Smart hearing aids are becoming a must for anybody who has hearing loss because much like your smartwatch and smartphone, they’re simply created to do more. So now that you’re ready to deal with your hearing loss and start using a hearing aid, contact us for an appointment and hearing assessment.