Hearing loss can have a huge impact on your life, be it your efficiency at work or your relationships. Today, you no longer need to visit an audiologist to determine whether you have hearing loss. All you need to do is take an online hearing test. For the millions of people with the condition, hearing aids are the most effective solution for restoring their auditory ability. If you’re considering hearing aids, here’s what you need to know: 

How do Hearing Aids Help?

As the name suggests, these devices are designed to improve your hearing. Depending on the extent of your hearing loss, aids can be customised to address your needs. Most digital hearing aids come with a microphone to pick up sounds, a computer chip for amplifying and processing the sound, a speaker for sending the sound signals to the ears, and a battery for powering the device. 

Even as you consider buying hearing aids, it’s best to remember that not everyone experiencing hearing loss can benefit from these devices. Hearing aids are primarily helpful to individuals who have damage to the inner ear or the nerve that links the ear to the brain. Such damage can result from:

  • Aging
  • Disease 
  • Side-effects of some medications
  • Excessively loud noises

If your hearing loss is caused by problems in the middle ear or ear canal (conductive hearing loss), aids won’t be of much use to you. Thus, it’s advisable to consult a specialist before purchasing these devices.

Getting Hearing Aids

The first thing to do when you start experiencing hearing loss is inform your primary healthcare provider about it. He/she is the best person to recommend an audiologist to determine the cause of the condition. The easier route is to take an online hearing test to establish how bad the condition is. 

It’s always good practice to work with an audiologists when considering hearing aids. He/she will help you find one that suits you best, ad the special features you need on a hearing aid. The right hearing aid for you will depend on: 

  • The type and extent of your condition
  • Your age
  • Your ability to cope with a small device in your ear
  • Your occupation and lifestyle
  • Your budget and cost of the available hearing aids

Types of Hearing Aids

You can choose from two types or hearing aids. Here’s a quick look at each of them. 

Analogue Hearing Aids

These devices improve your auditory ability by converting sound waves into electric signals before amplifying them. Analogue hearing aids feature simple volume controls and are usually less expensive than digital models. 

Digital Hearing Aids

These hearing aids are designed to convert ambient sound waves into numerical codes that resemble computer codes, before amplifying them. The code comprises information regarding the pitch or volume of the sound as well as its direction. 

Thanks to this capability, a digital hearing aid allows you to conveniently capture the sound you need. This particularly comes in handy if you find yourself in noisy and crowded places such as stadiums and restaurants. Digital hearing aids tend to be smaller, more powerful, and costlier than analogue ones. 

Styles of Hearing Aids

Canal

These hearing aids are hard to spot when worn since they fit snugly inside the ear. Canal hearing aids help with mild to considerably severe hearing loss. However, their size makes it difficult to adjust or remove them. Thus, they aren’t ideal for kids or adults who might have problems with tiny devices. 

In-The-Ear Hearing Aids

These devices are designed to completely fit inside the outer ear. Typically, they feature a hard plastic housing the electric components. ITE hearing aids are best suited for individuals battling mild to extensive hearing loss. However, they are not suitable for kids whose ears are still developing. 

Behind-The-Ear Hearing Aids

These are the most common hearing aids. Typically, they sit behind the ear and feature a plastic cover that houses the electrical components. There’s also a plastic ear mould, which sits inside the outer ear to channel sound waves into the ear. BTEs are suitable for mitigating mild to extensive hearing loss. 

Key Takeaways

If you’ve been thinking about getting hearing aids, but don’t know where to start, you’re not alone. However, you should remember that this is a significant investment, thus the need to make an informed decision when purchasing a hearing aid.