Like many other devices, hearing aids are getting smarter every day. They’re also less conspicuous and cooler than ever before. The U.S. census reports that the average American is older as the whole population gets older, and sadly, loss of hearing, especially in older people, is really common. About 37.5 million adults in America say they have some hearing loss, and these numbers are climbing.
Fortunately hearing technology has had some exciting breakthroughs recently that will offer more options for dealing with loss of hearing. Here are just a few of the enhancements that are now available.
Hearing Aids That Track Your General Health
Did you realize that hearing aids can track some key vital signs as well or better than a fitness tracker? Not only can it track step count, how many calories were burned, the total number of steps you took and heart rate, it also checks the time in between heartbeats to help detect any cardiovascular issues. They’re also developing technology that can assess other important vital signs like blood pressure and oxygenation of the blood. Hearing aids also often have other pluses, like the ability to help drown out tinnitus and will help your overall hearing so that your social life will get better as well. Actually, social engagement is another statistic we should pay attention to because it has been connected to your general health. Since hearing aids can now also sync with your smartphone so you can listen to your songs, who needs a smartwatch or fitness device?
Simpler And More intelligent Streaming
As we get addicted to virtual assistants like Alexa and Siri, being connected and able to communicate with them is becoming more important. Even if you ignore the lure of talking directly to these assistants, hearing aids that have Bluetooth permit you to stream sound from any Bluetooth device including your phone or smart TV. Imagine the advantages of this: You can avoid getting yelled at for having the Volume too loud while watching this year’s Super Bowl in a room full of screaming friends. You will be capable of managing your loss of hearing more inconspicuously and also appreciate your music, phone calls, and shows more by hearing them directly in your ears.
Automatic Adjustments
Ever notice how Goodreads seems to know what kind of book you like to read? Or how Amazon seems to know which items to recommend? That’s because big data and artificial intelligence are very powerful. Current hearing aids can also make changes automatically according to your reactions in the past. It will notice how you prefer to turn the volume down when you go into the train station and do that automatically the next time it detects you’ve entered the station (or any other circumstance with to much background noise). They are also beginning to network your hearing aids with other devices belonging to people near you in order to alert you of a possible loud noise danger nearby. Over time the hearing aids add up all this information to make suggestions and automatic corrections, so you can adjust quickly to variations in the hearing environment.
No More Tiny Batteries to Change.
Why would you want to continuously struggle with hearing aid batteries? You can now get rechargeable hearing aids. While you can do a lot to help extend the life of your hearing aids’ batteries, truth be told…it’s still frustrating and pricey. Even better, technology to recharge your hearing aids while they are still in your ears is being developed.
