New Year’s Resolution: Get Your Hearing Tested

The 2020 is upon us and with it may come resolutions for a New Year.  Perhaps this is the year you will finally organize your home or reinvent your career.  Maybe you are planning more rest and relaxation abroad or with loved ones in the New Year.  No matter what you love to do, it is important that your health is in tip top shape.  One of the most persistent health problems in the United States is hearing loss.  In fact, 48 million Americans suffer from hearing loss. 

Do you have hearing loss?

You may notice a number of early warning signs and changes in your behavior that may be related to hearing loss. You may begin to:

• Complain that people are mumbling or speaking too softly
• Frequently ask people to repeat what they have said –especially in noisy situations
• Prefer the television or radio louder than other people
• Have difficulty understanding on the telephone
• Not understand all the dialogue at the movies or during live theater productions
• Have difficulty understanding at your house of worship or other public gatherings
• Find yourself more impatient, irritable, frustrated or withdrawn than before
• Have trouble understanding people when you cannot see their faces
• Strain to hear conversations, especially when in a group setting

Benefits of Hearing Aids

These days hearing aids are discrete, have advanced technology and positively impact the wearer’s life.  Hearing aids are no longer the bulky machinery your grandparents wore. The benefits of wearing hearing aids are too valuable to ignore.

Improved relationships

Many hearing aid wearers experience a positive impact on their relationships when they start using hearing aids. In addition, the family of new hearing aid wearers found their relationships improved.
People with hearing loss often report feeling lonely, not being able to keep up with the conversation and group environments being difficult. Once fitted with a hearing aid, they’re able to join the conversation again.

Quality of life

70% of hearing aid wearers become more outgoing after they start using hearing aids. Hearing loss not only impacts you, but those around you too. Most people feel their quality of life improved once a close relative started using hearing aids. When a relative starts using a hearing aid, their immediate family often notice that they start acting more independently and with improved confidence. When you’re able to participate in conversations, go out to restaurants and hear people clearly, both your personal and work life benefit. 

Be more independent

We are surrounded by noise, in particular warning sounds. Smoke alarms and sirens are noises that need to be heard for emergencies and safety. Being able to hear car sounds, horns and on-coming traffic are important whilst driving. Hearing aids can help assist in hearing safety sounds.

Decrease in cognitive decline

a long-term study was published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. It found that wearing a set of hearing aids lessened cognitive decline in people with hearing loss. The study, titled Self-Reported Hearing Loss: Hearing Aids and Cognitive Decline in Elderly Adults: A 25-year Study, followed over three thousand adults over the age of 65. What the researchers discovered was that the rate of cognitive decline was higher in those with hearing loss compared to those with healthy hearing. However, people that used hearing aids to correct their hearing loss displayed no difference in the rate of cognitive decline as compared to those with normal hearing.

Hearing aids are practically invisible when worn.

As stated before hearing aids continue to make technological advances to be more discrete and adapt to the many different environments you may interact on the daily.  Hearing aid technology is now extremely advanced which has resulted in precise sound, reduced background noise and tiny devices that are practically invisible. There are different types of hearing aids on the market to suit your lifestyle and severity of hearing loss.

New Year for a new start!

Make 2020 the year you get your hearing tested and get on the road to better hearing health! Contact us at Orange County Physicians to set up an appointment today.