2024-03-04 14:40:34
Millions of people have poor hearing – without knowing it or doing anything about it. That doesn’t have to be the case.
Anyone who has poor vision usually wears glasses or contact lenses. However, not everyone who has poor hearing wears a hearing aid. This has negative consequences that extend far beyond hearing.
Researchers at the University of Mainz evaluated data from more than 5,000 people in 2023. The participants ranged in age from young adults to those over 80. The evaluation showed that almost half of the participants met the requirement for a hearing aid on both sides according to the so-called aid guidelines.
However, only 7.7 percent actually wore two hearing aids. On average, women’s hearing was better than men’s. As you get older, the risk of hearing worse increases significantly.
Marvels of technology
Eva Keil-Becker, hearing acoustics master from Koblenz, knows the prejudices that people have towards hearing aids: “We used to see this as a stigma. Hearing aids looked like skin-colored bananas.” However, those days are long gone. Modern hearing aids are technological marvels and the smallest portable computers in the world, said Keil-Becker ahead of World Hearing Day on March 3rd.
But the massive undersupply of hearing aids also has another reason, according to the Vice President of the European Union of Hearing Care Professionals (EUHA): “Hearing loss is a gradual process. It takes an average of seven years before you notice it.” According to the EUHA, 5.4 million people in Germany suffer from hearing loss, including more than 500,000 children.
Poor hearing increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease
Speaking more clearly or turning up the volume on the television only seems to help those affected. Poor hearing is often accompanied by dizziness and tinnitus, as Keil-Becker explains. Poor hearing also increases the risk of dementia, an international research group (The Lancet Commission on Dementia and Prevention) found.
“The brain needs input,” explains Frank Jessen, head of the Alzheimer Prevention Center in Cologne. People who have difficulty hearing receive less information and therefore have a higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Therefore, a hearing aid should be just as obvious as glasses.
In typical age-related hearing loss, the high frequencies are lost first, the hearing care professional explains to her customers. Most of the consonants and therefore the majority of the information are in the high tones range. According to Keil-Becker, many of those affected complain: “I hear, but I don’t understand what is being said.”
“No new hearing at the push of a button”
The first step is to have your hearing tested. When a hearing aid is recommended, the customer must be clear: “There is no new hearing at the push of a button,” says Keil-Becker. Selecting and fitting a hearing aid is not trivial, as the range of devices is large and the needs of customers are different.
Acousticians therefore focus on three criteria: comfort, sound and cosmetics. Anyone who often goes to concerts or is a professional musician needs optimal sound quality. For people who do a lot of sport, it is important that the device is robust.
Health insurance companies cover the majority of the costs
In contrast to glasses, statutory health insurance companies cover a large part of the costs, according to Keil-Becker 700 to 800 euros per side. But there are also basic models that only require an additional payment of ten euros per ear.
The latest hearing aids also have numerous additional functions, and more and more are being added thanks to artificial intelligence (AI). Many hearing aids can be controlled via an app on your cell phone.
There are already devices with integrated fitness trackers or fall detectors. Hearing aids are also being developed to remind the wearer to take their medication.
Hearing is important for child development
But age-related hearing loss is not the only indication for a hearing aid. Children and newborns also have difficulty hearing.
Because language input is so important for development, it is necessary to identify and counteract hearing loss as early as possible. A hearing aid can also be helpful for tinnitus, a ringing in the ear that is often caused by stress.
Regular hearing tests from the age of 50
The European Union of Hearing Care Professionals recommends regular hearing tests from the age of 50. In addition to education, experts also value prevention.
For example, if you wear headphones all day long, you can overstress your auditory nerve in the long term. It is therefore better to take regular listening breaks and be careful with your own hearing.