Who doesn’t love finding a good bargain? But you should be careful and look out for little details in regards to your health.
The names “hearing aid” and “hearing amplifier” might seem similar but they are actually entirely different devices. And making the wrong choice could have important ramifications for your hearing and your general health.
What is a hearing amplifier?
A hearing amplifier is a small device that, when put in your ear, increases the volume of the sounds around you. Technically categorized as personal sound amplification products by the government, these gadgets tend to be fairly basic and one-dimensional. The volume of the world is essentially cranked up.
These devices are usually not suggested for individuals with moderate to severe hearing loss because of their one-size-fits-all strategy.
Hearing amplifier aren’t hearing aids
It starts to become pretty apparent that hearing aids are not the same as hearing amplification devices when you recognize that amplifiers are not recommended for people with even moderate hearing loss. Obviously, hearing aids are appropriate for individuals with hearing loss.
Both hearing aids and hearing amplifiers make things louder. The primary difference between the two devices is how sophisticated that amplification is.
- Whatever environment you find yourself, your hearing aids can calibrate to it. The acoustics of any given space will change depending on a lengthy list of factors. These adjustments can even happen automatically with some modern hearing aids. Other models can be adjusted using a smartphone or a dedicated device. By making small adjustments to the settings of your hearing aid, you’re capable of hearing better in a wider variety of settings, meaning there will be fewer places you want to avoid.
- Picking out and amplifying speech is one of the main functions of a hearing aid. In part, that’s the result of the uneven way hearing loss progresses, but it’s also because communication is such a fundamental function of your hearing. So this function has been prioritized by hearing aid manufacturers who have put considerable resources into enhancing it. In order to make certain voices can be heard clearly even in a noisy room, sophisticated technology and algorithms are bundled inside of modern hearing aids.
- Hearing aids are designed to identify and magnify specific wavelengths of sound. Because hearing loss frequently progresses wavelength by wavelength. Frequencies at the higher and lower end of the spectrum are usually the first to go. Instead of making everything louder, hearing aids work to plug holes in what you’re hearing. For individuals who have hearing loss, this selective approach is more effective.
Simply put, these features are crucial elements of effectively treating hearing loss. And these are attributes that are not present in the majority of personal hearing amplifiers.
Finding the best solution at an affordable price
Along with a decreased ability to hear, untreated hearing loss can also result in cognitive decline. Because amplifiers don’t distinguish between frequencies, if you turn them up enough to hear what you’re missing, you’ll probably have it up too loud for other frequencies….and damage your hearing further. And who wants to do that?
Right now, the only approved treatments for hearing loss, if it’s not a result of earwax, are certain surgeries and hearing aids. You won’t save any money in the long run by failing to get treatment for your hearing loss. Overall healthcare costs have been shown to increase by over 40% with untreated hearing loss. Fortunately, there are affordable solutions. We can help.
References
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hearing-loss/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20373077