{"id":6014,"date":"2020-04-29T08:28:50","date_gmt":"2020-04-29T12:28:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.silvercentury.org\/?p=6014"},"modified":"2020-04-29T08:28:50","modified_gmt":"2020-04-29T12:28:50","slug":"hearing-aids-get-smarter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/78.142.243.82\/~silvercentury\/2020\/04\/hearing-aids-get-smarter\/","title":{"rendered":"Hearing Aids Get Smarter"},"content":{"rendered":"

My friend, Jeanne, has new hearing aids, and I\u2019m green with envy. Compared to her aids, mine seem about as cutting edge as a horse and buggy in the dawning era of the car.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what hers will do:<\/span><\/p>\n

When she turns on her TV set, the audio goes straight to her ears through the aids. What\u2019s more, the sound has never been clearer, she says. <\/span><\/p>\n

If she wants to stream music, or listen to a podcast or audiobook that\u2019s been downloaded onto her smartphone, she can send it straight to her hearing aids, which have been paired with her phone via Bluetooth. <\/span><\/p>\n

When she gets a phone call, she takes it by pressing a tiny button on one of her aids. If she\u2019s watching television at the time, the TV audio is immediately replaced by the voice of her caller. As soon as the call ends, the audio comes back.<\/span><\/p>\n

If Jeanne has trouble hearing in a noisy restaurant (<\/span>a problem that drives me crazy<\/span><\/a>), she taps on her cell phone a few times\u2014and it mutes much of the background noise.<\/span><\/p>\n

She never has to replace tiny batteries. Last thing at night, she just drops her aids into a recharger. <\/span><\/p>\n

During the five years I\u2019ve had my own hearing aids, there have been all kinds of advances in what these devices can do. It\u2019s not hard to guess why. <\/span><\/p>\n

In the past, most decision makers in the health field didn\u2019t take hearing loss all that seriously. They seem to have assumed it was simply part of normal aging. That may explain why Medicare doesn\u2019t pay for aids or even for routine hearing tests, nor do most health insurance policies. <\/span><\/p>\n

But now a number of studies have linked hearing loss to medical problems nobody wants to have, including depression and dementia. In fact, being hard of hearing raises <\/span>the likelihood that you\u2019ll develop dementia<\/a><\/span> within 10 years by a whopping 50 percent. <\/span><\/p>\n

Could treatment in the form of hearing aids head off that devastating loss of memory? The National Institute for Aging has an ongoing study designed to answer that question\u2014results are expected in 2022.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another major reason companies have improved hearing aids is simply because they can, thanks to technological advances. Already, there have been a number of innovations beyond those in Jeanne\u2019s aids, and a few of them sound like science fiction.<\/span><\/p>\n

For instance, if you live in a smart house, some hearing aids will let you know when the doorbell rings or the laundry is done. They will also automatically turn off the lights when you shut your aids down at night. <\/span><\/p>\n

Other aids have been equipped with sensors and artificial intelligence. They can record the number of steps you take and how much time you spend in conversation, add them up and give you your wellness score for the day. What\u2019s more, if you fall, they will immediately text the news to your emergency contact. <\/span><\/p>\n

But this is the innovation that really amazes me. Let\u2019s say your native tongue is English and you meet someone who launches into French. Some hearing aids will provide a simultaneous translation. <\/span><\/p>\n

You can also now get earbuds that can sometimes function as hearing aids\u2014and hearing aids that look like earbuds. The idea is that, either way, onlookers who notice what\u2019s in your ears won\u2019t suspect that you\u2019re hard of hearing but will assume you\u2019re just listening to music. Companies that make these devices are trying to get around a stigma: a lot of people are afraid that, if they wear hearing aids, others will see them as \u201cold.\u201d Of course, that\u2019s a fear born of ageism, and the companies are catering to it. <\/span><\/p>\n

But it seems to me that almost anything that persuades more people to get their ears some help is a good thing, because of those connections between hearing loss and depression and dementia.  <\/span><\/p>\n

Needless to say, some of the new, high-end capabilities I\u2019ve described command high-end prices, which is too bad. Four out of five people who need hearing aids don\u2019t have them, partly because of ageism, but more importantly because of the price\u2014$4,800 on average for a pair. And with most of these new, smart hearing aids, there\u2019s also the cost of a smartphone. <\/span><\/p>\n

But in a year or so, Americans will be able to buy some aids (presumably not high-tech) <\/span>over the counter for prices expected to be much lower<\/span><\/a> than today\u2019s, and that should help.<\/span><\/p>\n

My own hearing aids, now five years old, are probably nearing the end of their life. Once they go silent, I\u2019m definitely going to get something like what Jeanne has. And despite the big bite that will take out of my bank account, I\u2019m actually looking forward to it. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My friend, Jeanne, has new hearing aids, and I\u2019m green with envy. Compared to her aids, mine seem about as cutting edge as a horse and buggy in the dawning era of the car. Here\u2019s what hers will do: When…<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more Hearing Aids Get Smarter<\/span> ›<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

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