HEARING AID ADVICE
Answering some of the most frequently asked questions about hearing aids
Clarity
I’m not deaf, I can hear most things but sometimes I miss what people say when I’m in a group or in a noisy room. Do I need hearing aids?
With the ageing process we all lose the ability to hear high frequency (high pitch) sounds. This is exacerbated if we’ve worked previously in a noisy environment. In speech the high frequency sounds tend to be the soft consonants such as ‘p’ ‘f’ ‘s’. These sounds become harder to distinguish in speech with age. The low frequency hard consonants and vowel sounds are not affected and can still be heard just as well as ever, as can low frequency background noise and traffic noise etc.
Good modern hearing aids can help to amplify the high pitch sounds and filter out some low frequency sounds.
The longer one puts off tackling the problem the more difficult it will be to get effective improvement in the future.
Wireless Hearing Aids
What are ‘Wireless’ hearing aids?
The newest ranges of hearing aids are now mostly ‘wireless’. This means they can be programmed whilst in the ear and can be operated via remote control if desired. The wearer can turn the volume up or down via a small remote control no bigger than a mobile phone. Wireless hearing aids can also communicate with each other to better simulate the spatial and temporal qualities of normal hearing.
After Care
How often will my hearing aids need servicing?
Aftercare is essential with hearing aids. Most reputable retailers will offer free aftercare with hearing aids to include fine-tuning. Hearing acuity changes with time and therefore hearing aids need adjusting over time. It’s always best, in my opinion, to purchase hearing aids from a local source. You should have your hearing aids checked every six months. At U.K. Hearing Centres , this is offered free of charge.