You’ve probably heard that today’s hearing aids are “not your grandfather’s hearing aids,” or that hearing aid technology is light-years ahead of where it used to be, even as recently as 5 to 10 years ago. But what makes modern technology so much better? And what exactly can modern day hearing aids accomplish that couldn’t
At times, it seems as if we prefer to mislead ourselves. Wikipedia has an entry titled “List of common misconceptions” that contains hundreds of widely-held but false beliefs. Yes, I know it’s Wikipedia, but take a look at the bottom of the web page and you’ll see around 385 credible sources cited. For example, did
You have just concluded your hearing test. The hearing specialist is now entering the room and provides you with a graph, like the one above, except that it has all of these signs, colors, and lines. This is supposed to demonstrate to you the exact, mathematically precise attributes of your hearing loss, but to you
We don’t need to tell you the signs of hearing loss; you already know them all too well. You have a completely different type of challenge: persuading someone you care about to get their hearing assessed and treated. But how are you expected to get through to someone who denies there is even a problem,
It takes the average person with hearing loss 5 to 7 years before getting a professional diagnosis, notwithstanding the fact that the warning signs of hearing loss are obvious to others. But are those with hearing loss just too stubborn to get help? No, actually, and for a few different reasons. Maybe you know someone
If the unknown provokes anxiety, then a visit to the hearing specialist is especially nerve-racking. While nearly all of us have experience with the family doctor and the neighborhood dentist, the trip to the hearing specialist could be a first. It sure would be useful to have someone elaborate on the process ahead of time,
Although most of us remain up to date with our annual physical, dental cleaning, and eye examination, we generally forget to give consideration to the well-being of our hearing. And when our hearing does start to worsen, it appears so slowly and gradually that we scarcely notice and neglect to take action. It’s this lack
Do you recall the Q-Ray Bracelets? You know, the magnetic bracelets that vowed to provide instantaneous and significant pain relief from arthritis and other chronic conditions? Well, you won’t find much of that advertising anymore; in 2008, the producers of the Q-Ray Bracelets were legally required to reimburse customers a maximum of $87 million thanks
Hearing impairment is treacherously sneaky. It creeps up on a person through the years so slowly you hardly notice, making it all too easy to deny it’s even there. And then, when you at last recognize the symptoms, you shrug it off as troublesome and irritating as its true consequences are hidden. For about 48
Popularity, wealth, and screaming fans — these are a few of the terms and phrases you’d include to describe the lifestyle of a professional musician. In spite of this, what you probably wouldn’t consider is “hearing loss” or “tinnitus,” the not-so-pleasant side-effects of all that fame, wealth, and screaming. The sad paradox is, a musician’s
When it comes to an investment in your quality of life, there’s more than one way to measure value. Identifying and addressing hearing loss has been shown to positively influence virtually every aspect of an individual’s life, helping people personally, professionally and even financially. The Better Hearing Institute and Island Better Hearing are raising awareness
85 decibels. That’s the noise intensity at which repeated exposure can bring on severe hearing damage. 100 decibels. that is the sound measure reached by a rock concert, which is not-so-good news for performers or concert goers. It’s also part of a larger problem: According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), a staggering