COVID-19 and Hearing Health

 During this challenging time we're in, hearing health is also experiencing difficulty with muffled voices behind mask wearing.

It seems like every business and health issue is under new restrictions since the Coronaviris hit us this year. 2020 has become the most difficult year for people who have a hard time hearing conversations - especially in noise.

Hearing Health has been hit harder than most other ailments since people are wearing masks which muffles their voice; this makes hearing loss patients struggle since most of their hearing aids were not programmed for muffled voices behind masks.

Since this is a problem with so many patients, we have implemented plans to give a little more boost in the voice range to offset this new hearing challenge. Of course it must be noted how low-level hearing aids (usually costing $3,000.00 or less) cannot handle our custom "voice boost" since they are not capable of advanced programming for this new problem.

But all the mid-level to top-of-the-line hearing aids have much better features (you still get what you pay for) to handle voice boosting for extra muffled sound behind the masks. This goes for social distancing too since it's obvious how a distant voice is harder to hear than a close up conversation.

In our office, we have designed this approach to be permanent or temporary since no one knows when this virus will subside enough to eliminate this new hearing challenge. Our custom programming software is designed to save every programming appointment so we can go back in time to upload a patient's former settings or even set it to something in between. So we can go back to pre-COVID programming at any time.

Feel free to call us if you'd like to set an appointment for this great remedy to today's muffled voice problem. If you have purchased your hearing aids from us directly, there is no charge for this custom service.

Hearing Better in Noise Lately?

Since most people had still struggled to understand speech in noise, we went to Florida (and soon to Las Vegas) to learn more about new technology to hear better in noise:

While we're not "Vegas people" per say, or normally gravitate to the heat in Florida, one of the perks of owning a professional medical office is having our Hearing Aid manufacturers regularly send us all over the country (all expenses paid) to learn about the latest and greatest in Hearing Aid Technologies.

We recently enjoyed a 5-Star resort in Florida and a great side-trip-tour to the Everglades. Our next destination is Las Vegas for Sept/2019. (Of course we can't resist a show to see The Blue Man Group since were already there).

On this next trip (after a nice swim at the resort pool) we will be focusing on the advances of rechargeable Hearing Aids and new exciting developments on Hearing better in noise, which has been an ongoing struggle with many hearing loss patients.

Recently, hearing aids have finally become better at separating noise from speech in busy restaurants etc. Previous hearing aids have had some level of noise reduction, but not enough intelligent noise reduction without impairing the sound of the person talking with you, while in those environments. Thus, they did take down a little noise, but they also made the person speaking with you sound a bit muddy; like they were under water.

The key to noise reduction (and this takes incredible processing) is to reduce noise without reducing the person's voice who's speaking with you.

As mentioned earlier, most hearing aids have not been doing a good job at this demanding task; the top manufacturers like ReSound have been getting our past concerns, and thus spending millions on figuring out just how to make a hearing aid so smart, that is "knows" the difference between noise and the human voice. And not just a any human voice, but the voice that is speaking with you.

It's very difficult for a Hearing Aid processor to actually take out the distant human voices of those who are not speaking with you, while retaining the voice of those who are talking with you. After all, those distant voices are a large part of the noise that's hindering your understanding of speech.

One of the many things that impressed me as a professional audio engineer of 35 years, was this new ability of the ReSound Linx Quattro series to record the actual noise environment that you enter, analyze it, and then reduce it so you can understand the companions who are speaking to you.

So this new advancement is not just analyzing any noise, but the actual noise you are presently in. This is huge since environmental noise can vary from one place to another. So thanks to this modern technique, you can now have the actual noise you would had been struggling with be reduced as you enter into it; and at the same time, have your companion's voice enhanced for ease of understanding their words.

So when you hear of someone complaining that their hearing aids amplify all the noise and voices together (making it very hard to understand words) now you can tell them there is new technology that has transformed the way people comprehend speech in noisy areas.

This new "wow" factor has taken our hearing aids to a whole new level of listening enjoyment and speech understanding...

We look forward to the next learning experience as part of our commitment to help people hear better in noise!

NEW rechargeable Hearing Aids are here!

My first question was, how do they sound? It's nice that we can do away with batteries, but that would be pointless unless they sound good. And what about charge time? I only have to charge my cell phone once a day...how long can a small hearing aid charge actually last? And finally, what if I'm camping, out of town and forget my charger or flying on a plane for an extended time? Do I have to loose my hearing ability until I get to my charger? And then wait until it charges up?

To my surprise, the new rechargeables sounded many times better than their battery counterparts! And being a professional audio engineer for over 35 years (owning and operating a recording studio) I'm hard to please with audio and I have a very particular opinion about sound quality.

Evidently, Uniton made a wise decision to perform several new feats of technological advancements when they released their new Moxi Fit R. (R for rechargeable of course).

First, they greatly improved the sound by upgrading the chip. (The chip processes the sound and has everything to do with the quality of hearing). I was astonished when I heard the new Moxi Fit R's since I'm a hearing aid wearer and I've tried many of the top brand premium hearing aids for myself. The Moxi Fit R's sounded more natural, clearer and much smoother than anything I've ever heard.

They still have the life-saving tinnitus masker, which eliminates the annoying ringing in my ears; that was developed from years of mixing loud music for my recording studio clients. (I think seeing Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones and dozens of other loud rock concerts didn't help either).

The next bonus was the charging time. They stay charged all day and into the night, so I just plug them in right next to my cell phone for charging once a day!

But there's another really cool feature: these tiny marvels of technology actually take batteries too! That surprised me since almost nothing that's rechargeable can also independently take standard (hearing aid) batteries.

Other rechargeable brands have lost the edge by being too large (to hold the recharging electronics) and I haven't seen any others that can additionally take standard batteries either. Unitron advertises they are the smallest rechargeable hearing aids in the world and that's important to everyone. Every time I show my hearing aids to a potential patient, they are quite surprised that I was even wearing them. I always get a kick out of speaking with them for at least five to ten minutes before I show them off...that way they know first hand how these nearly-invisible hearing aids are usually only detectable if you tell someone you have them on.

Uniton has certainly created a game-changer in the hearing aid industry by developing a great sounding hearing aid, easy recharging ability and all the other features such as optional T.V. & smart phone streaming and lots more.

Click here for a FREE week trial: www.crystalclearhearingaids.com

Avoiding Hearing Loss

If you already have hearing loss, there’s no way to restore it unless there’s a treatable medical condition that caused it. But if it’s not a medical condition, rather just age-related or noise-related hearing loss, 95% of the time it can be successfully treated.

If the damage hasn’t been done yet, and you have normal hearing they’re are ways to prevent severe hearing loss; And you shouldn’t think just because you could take loud noise in your youth, that you can still take it later in life without the possibility of permanent damage; aging affects every aspect of our health including hearing.

The sad part about hearing loss is it’s almost always permanent…the only exception is certain medical conditions that can be treated such as middle ear infections and certain other conditions that your doctor can advise you on.

The World Health Organization estimates one billion young individuals around the globe are at risk of hearing loss because of unsafe listening practices; Especially with the popular listening devices, loud headphones, concerts etc. 10% of our current population already has hearing loss.

A few of the easy measures: Using ear plugs when you’re exposed to loud noise is highly recommended. Avoid being too close to speakers at a friends house or a live act at the local bar and concerts. Think more about loud noise exposure before you’re exposed to it so you can do something about it when it suddenly happens. Do you go shooting or hunting? Avoid inexpensive hearing protection! Gun shots are so potentially damaging, you need quality protection to help prevent hearing loss.

Here’s a list of probable risks that generate sound above 85 decibels (DB) which is the maximum level for safe hearing:

90-100 DB: Lawn movers— especially older ones - If you mow your lawn or use heavy equipment, use ear plugs.

80-110 DB: Attending local fairs—Those race cars can hurt your ears if you’re too close and the small entertainment venues can get loud too.

80-100 DB: Hair driers near your ear without ear plugs can also put you at risk.

Taking a helicopter ride or working near loud airplanes or vehicles.

120 DB and above: Shooting ranges and just about any military position

90-110 DB: Subway trains

115 DB: Baby’s cry - Be careful when holding a crying baby near your ear.

110 DB: Car horn

100 DB: Snowmobiles and other off road vehicles

We are exposed to so many noises that can cause hearing loss; Care should be taken in the same way you wear glasses for your eyes. Preventive maintenance can potentially help you avoid the need for hearing aids for many years.

But if hearing loss has already occurred or you’re not sure how severe your hearing loss may be, having your ears checked is FREE at Crystal Clear Hearing Aids. And there’s no pressure to purchase anything when you visit us.

Treating your hearing loss can save other health issues that have been known to increase when hearing loss is present:

Dementia—Up to 5 times greater risk of getting dementia when hearing loss is not treated
Headaches
Frustrated loved ones when you ask them to repeat themselves often
Depression and feeling secluded
Accidents: Like not hearing a quiet car in a parking lot
Discrimination: toward the person with Hearing loss
Compensation behaviors: When pretending you hear, people pick up on your miscommunication
Anger and frustration: in relationships and co-workers
Depression: and depressive symptoms
Anxiety
Social phobias

Noise at work has been such a culprit for hearing loss that the U.S. government has finally enacted a ‘Noise at work” act in 2005, which mandates employers to provide ear plugs to employees who are exposed to loud noise on the job.

Of course most of us don’t have ear plugs readily available so it’s a good idea to keep a pair in your purse, pocket, car and at work.