Recently, the FDA released its final regulations on over the counter hearing aids. This regulation introduced an entirely new category of hearing aids called "over the counter" or "OTC." OTC hearing aids officially became available Monday, October 17th, and will be an additional option to the existing category of hearing aids that the FDA now refers to as “prescription.” As the name suggests, OTC hearing aids will be available over the counter at pharmacies, various ...
Put some spring in your hearing! Google the season “spring” and you’ll see images of blooming flowers, butterflies and birds, or find quotes about gardens, happiness and new beginnings. We hear a lot from our hearing aid wearers that spring signals a time of planning and renewal. It’s the season many of you visit your hearing professional to get earwax buildup removed or bring your hearing aids in for a “spring cleaning”. It ...
A 2020 New York Times article headlined “Can Hearing Aids Help Prevent Dementia?” covers a lot of things we’ve known — and have been sharing with you — for years. Like that hearing loss is very common, that it’s a risk factor for things like cognitive decline, social isolation and dementia, and that too few people take it seriously. As you'd expect from the headline, the article focuses primarily on this link between hearing ...
Maybe it’s been this way for a while and we just didn't notice, but loneliness is getting a lot of attention from healthcare professionals lately. One obvious reason is COVID-19, which has forced people to socially distance or isolate themselves, and has severely limited in-person interactions, especially for older adults. Another reason is the increasing evidence of its negative effects on our health — like social isolation and loneliness are associated with increased mortality ...
It’s February, which, thanks to Valentine’s Day, is a good month to discuss matters of the heart. Plenty will be written and said about the heart’s connection to love. We’ll leave that topic to the relationship experts. Instead, we want to discuss the heart’s connection to hearing and hearing loss — a subject much more in our comfort zone. And studies show there is a connection. Turns out hearing health and ...
Today’s hearing fact probably isn’t something that comes to mind when you think about hearing loss. But — if you do think about it — makes a lot of sense. It’s also potentially much more consequential than, say, missing a punchline in your favorite sitcom or your name being called when your Starbucks mocha is ready. According to Reuters and the National Institute on Aging, untreated hearing loss can result in trouble understanding a ...
Do you ever feel like the people you’re talking to are mumbling or speaking too quickly? Are you having to ask others to repeat themselves frequently? Or maybe you’re struggling to follow a conversation when there is background noise? If so, these could be indicators that you have a hearing loss. It’s not uncommon for friends and family members to notice we have hearing loss before we do. Most likely, it’s ...
If you are an older adult or have a parent, grandparent, or friend who is not as sturdy on their feet as they once were, you’ve probably thought about or talked about falling. Falls are some of the most frequent injuries suffered by older adults. They can be the scariest, too. According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Falls are the second leading ...
In places where it gets cold, it can be tough on a lot of things: automobiles, fingers and toes, and our psyche. But it doesn’t need to be hard on hearing aids, so long as you keep in mind a few things to do — and not do — when wearing hearing aids in cold weather. Five do’s Be careful when removing hats and scarves to avoid pulling off and losing your hearing aids. Keep ...
If the human body came with Care & Maintenance instructions, today’s recommendation from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) would certainly be on them. It’d be right in there to have your teeth cleaned and checked annually; visit your general practitioner for physicals and blood work; get vaccinated from diseases; exercise; eat fruits and vegetables; drink plenty of water and, of course, “do not dry clean.” The recommendation makes sense. Our hearing is tightly tied ...