Hearing aids, as with many other devices, are getting smarter, less conspicuous and cooler all the time, and just in time. The U.S. census documents that the average American is older as the population as a whole ages, and unfortunately, hearing loss, particularly in older people, is really common. About 37.5 million adults in America say they have some hearing loss, and these numbers are climbing.
Luckily more possibilities for dealing with hearing loss are available due to amazing developments in recent hearing technology. A few of the developments coming our way are presented here.
Your Overall Health Can be Tracked by Your Hearing Aids
Hearing aids are equal to if not better than a fitness tracker at tracking several vital signs. Not only can it track the time between heartbeats to help detect potential cardiovascular concerns, but it also tracks calories burned, heart rate, step count, and the total number of steps taken. They are even working on technology that can determine blood pressure, oxygenation of the blood and other important vital signs. There are other possible advantages that come with hearing aids, including the ability to help drown out tinnitus and will improve your social life by helping your general hearing. Actually, social involvement is another statistic we should pay attention to because it has been linked to your general health. Since hearing aids can now also sync with your smartphone so you can listen to your songs, who needs a smartwatch or fitness device?
Easier And Smarter Streaming
As we become more dependant on virtual assistants like Alexa and Siri, being connected and able to communicate with them is becoming more important. Even if talking to these assistants is not your thing, Bluetooth hearing aids permit you to stream sound from any Bluetooth device including your smart TV or phone. Just think of the advantages: You can steer clear of getting yelled at for having the Volume too loud while watching this year’s Super Bowl in a room full of screaming friends. Being able to directly stream phone calls, music, shows and more right to your ears not only helps you hear and appreciate them more, but it will help you manage your hearing loss inconspicuously.
Automatic Adjustments
Ever notice how Goodreads seems to know what type of book you like to read? Or how all your favorite kinds of things get advertised to you by Amazon? That’s because big data and artificial intelligence are very powerful. The latest hearing aids can also make adjustments automatically according to your responses in the past. For example, if you lowered the volume the last time you went to the train station, your hearing aid will remember that and turn itself down the next time you go into the train station. They are extending this technology to include crowdsourcing also, allowing information from other people to inform your hearing aids that you’re entering a loud zone. Over time you will be able to quickly adjust to variations in the hearing environment because your hearing aid will make recommendations based on all the information it has collected.
What? No More Tiny 312 Batteries?
Who wants to constantly struggle with hearing aid batteries? You can now get rechargeable hearing aids. While you can do a lot to help increase the life of your hearing aids’ batteries, truth be told…it’s still frustrating and expensive. Even better, they are working on technology to recharge hearing aids without even having to take them out.