Hearing aids improve communication in a wide variety of listening environments, from the workplace to restaurants and movie theaters to religious institutions. With many such environments being closed due to COVID-19, most people have spent a majority of their time at home.
Even when you’re not spending time in public spaces, it’s important to be consistent in your hearing aid use. Below are some of the reasons why.
Hearing Aids Keep Your Brain Active
In a Johns Hopkins study that tracked over 600 adults for 12 years, researchers found that mild untreated hearing loss doubled the risk of dementia, and those with severe untreated hearing loss were five times more likely to experience cognitive decline.
Researchers hypothesize that this connection is due to lack of social interaction and stimulation since many people with hearing loss become socially withdrawn. Another theory is that, when you cannot hear well, your brain focuses more energy on listening and understanding than on cognition and memory.
Hearing Aids Make You Alert to Emergencies
If you have hearing loss, you should outfit your house with special alerts like a doorbell connected to flashing lights, extra loud and/or flashing fire alarms and vibrating alarm clocks. However, there are other warning sounds you could miss, such as the sound of your partner shouting from another room or your dog barking to warn of an intruder. If you don’t wear your hearing aids at home, you could miss these important warnings.
Hearing Aids Connect You to Others
If you’re still in the workforce and have moved to telecommuting, your hearing aids can still provide benefit and keep you connected to your colleagues. For example, it will be easier to follow video conference meetings when wearing your hearing aids. Many hearing aids can connect to your computer, phone or tablet via Bluetooth so you can stream conference calls directly to your ears.
Even if you don’t work or telecommute, wearing your devices at home shows your loved ones that you care about what they have to say and are willing to make an effort to foster healthy relationships with them.
For more information about the benefits of hearing aids or to schedule an appointment, call the The Hearing & Balance Center at Charleston ENT today.