The numbers don’t lie: at some point in your life, you’re most likely going to require a hearing aid. A report from NIDCD estimates that about a quarter of all individuals from 60 to 75 have some form of hearing loss, and that number jumps up to 50% for people 75 and older. The best way to fight age-related loss of hearing is to wear a hearing aid, but how can you discover which style is the right one for you? Advancements in technology through the years have resolved some of the issues generally associated with hearing aids, such as too much background noise and vulnerability to water damage. But there’s still a good deal you should know when picking a hearing aid to ensure that it works with your lifestyle.
Directionality is a Crucial Feature
One important feature you need to look for in a hearing aid is directionality, which is the ability for your hearing aid to focus on the specific noise around you (like a conversation) while keeping background noise to a minimum. One, if not both, of two directionality systems are working inside most hearing aids, they either focus in on sound directly in front of you, or they focus on sound produced by different speakers and sometimes do both.
Can You Use it With Your Phone?
It’s become obvious, we’re addicted to our cellphone as a country. You more than likely have some kind of cell phone, either a smartphone or an older style cell phone. And for the few who don’t actually have a cell phone, you most likely still have a land-line. So, when you’re trying out different hearing aids, you should test how they connect to your phone. How does it sound? Do voices sound sharp? Is it Comfortable? Is it Bluetooth Ready? When looking at new hearing aids, you should take into consideration all of these.
What is The Probability You Would Actually Wear it?
As mentioned above, hearing aid technology has progressed by leaps and bounds over the last few years. One of those advances has been the size and shape of hearing aids, which have moved towards the smaller and more comfortable path. Nevertheless, there will always be some trade-offs. A more compact hearing aid might not be as powerful as a bigger one, so it really depends on your hearing professional’s recommendation and what you need to accomplish with your hearing aid. You can get a hearing aid that fits right into your ear canal and is all but invisible, but it won’t have many of the functions available in larger hearing aids and will be prone to earwax clogs. On the other side of it, a behind the ear hearing aid is bigger and may be more noticeable, but often come with more directionality functions and have more choices for sound amplification.
What Kind of Background Sound Will You be Exposed to?
Wind noise has been an extreme difficulty for hearing aid users ever since they were invented. It would have driven anybody nuts to go outside on a breezy day and hear nothing except wind. If you’re an outdoors person or you live in a windy area, you’ll want to get a hearing aid that suppresses wind noise so you can carry on conversations at an average volume and avoid the headaches that are associated with hearing aid wind noises. Looking for more information about how to pick the correct hearing aid? Give us a call.