Call it a personal communication assistant
by Theresa CullenIf you are between the ages of 46 and 64, 15 percent of you already have hearing problems. Two of three people with hearing loss are below the traditional retirement age. Six out of 10 are men. But let’s be real. Baby boomers are not going to wear hearing aids, right?
Get ready for an entirely new take by manufacturers. Aids are now being marketed to baby boomers as personal communication assistants. And they are tinier and more stylish than ever before. So tiny, in many cases, that they are almost impossible to physically detect. The most modern and miniature versions can cost as little as $2,400.
Hearing loss affects more than your ability to catch words. It is associated with short-term memory loss. You spend so much cognitive energy trying to hear accurately that it diminishes your ability to remember a short word list. Hearing loss also leads to stress and fatigue and when untreated can lead to depression and anxiety.
And with baby boomers planning to continue working, hearing loss can mean a parallel loss of income – about $12,000 annually, according to some studies.
We all struggle to keep up with the conversation in settings with background noise. The good news is that the new technology was designed specifically with this challenge in mind. Two microphones are used to enhance sound coming from the front (the person you are talking to), while tuning down sound coming from behind (the rest of the noisy party). They contain super-charged microprocessors that read and instantly respond to your ever-changing environment. It silently performs millions of calculations per second.
The creation of devices using Bluetooth technology now can turn select personal communication assistants into wireless, hands-free headsets. This means they can be compatible with cell phones as well.
Remember, social interaction is what makes us feel alive. If demanding listening situations have become a challenge, new technology makes it easier than ever to hear what you’ve been missing.
Dr. Theresa Cullen is an audiologist and president of Cape Cod Hearing Center. She can be reached at (508) 775-0959.
Common signs and symptoms of hearing loss
Do you:
• require frequent repetition?
• have difficulty following conversations involving more than two people?
• think other people sound muffled or like they are mumbling?
• have difficulty hearing in noisy situations like conferences, restaurants, malls or meeting rooms?
• have trouble hearing women and children especially?
• answer or respond inappropriately in conversations?
Emotionally, people with hearing loss may:
• feel stressed from straining to hear what others are saying
• feel annoyed at others because they can’t hear or understand them
• feel embarrassed to meet new people
• feel nervous about trying to hear or understand
• withdraw from social that you once enjoyed
Hearing loss and your economic status
• Untreated hearing loss negatively affects household income, on average, up to $23,000 a year.
• Use of hearing instruments mitigates the effect of hearing loss on income by about 50 percent
• For every 10 percent increment in hearing loss, the difference in income disparity between those with untreated loss and those with aids increases at a rate of approximately $1,000.
• At a 15 percent tax bracket, the cost to society of untreated hearing loss is estimated in excess of $18 billion due to unrealized taxes.
Source: Better Hearing Institute
Published in Cape Business Health & Wealth July/August 2007
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