More Than Just an Amplifier: Discover the Features of Modern Hearing Aids
Over the 20+ years I have been working with hearing aids there have been incredible changes. Back when I started it wasn’t unusual to grab a tiny little screwdriver when we needed to adjust them – more high pitch, more low pitch and more volume. That was essentially it. Gone are those days as technology has advanced to incredible levels.
Let me tell you about what hearing aids can do today!
Gone are the days of that little screwdriver. Now hearing aids have many equalizers allowing us to precisely match your hearing loss. They can have dual processing, meaning hearing aids can learn and process speech sounds separately from noise sounds. This means they can selectively enhance wanted sounds while suppressing unwanted ones. They are equipped with AI and Machine Learning allowing them to continuously adapt to your listening habits and environments, learning to help you hear your best over time.
Hearing aids can connect to all your devices. Whether it is your phone, your TV, your tablet or your computer, hearing aids today can be like wireless headphones to allow you to hear from all your devices. Some hearing aids can even send you voice back to your phone, so you are truly hands free! They can come with accessories that allow you to hear up to 80 feet away and improve word recognition in noise up to 65% compared to using hearing aids alone.
Hearing aids can connect with apps allowing you to access to many features. They can give you greater control, fine tuning your settings or creating new programs while you are in the real world. You can perform diagnostic checks on your hearing aids to ensure they are working properly. You can set reminders in them and some even let you convert speech to text or translate different languages! Even if you are not tech savvy connecting your hearing aid to an app can help you locate a hearing aid if lost, showing you on your phone the hearing aid’s location. How fantastic is that!
Hearing aids can help track health information. They can be your step counter, monitor heart rate and breathing, and even can detect falls – sending an alert to someone of your choosing to come check on you.
They can help manage your tinnitus (ringing/buzzing in the ear).
Your hearing care professional can even connect to your hearing aids remotely, so if you cannot make it to the office, they can still do hearing aid adjustments for you. Hearing aids are rechargeable, and some chargers have a battery back up in them that can keep your hearing aid going for 5 days without a power source. This is way better than trying to fiddle with small batteries that can last as little as 3 days!
It is important to remember that not all features are in all devices, so it is essential for you to talk to your hearing care professional about what is most beneficial for you when making your decisions.
