Hearing Resources (152)

Did you know that people with diabetes are twice as likely to have some degree of hearing loss? Studies have shown hearing loss was more evident in diabetics than non-diabetics, though researchers are still uncertain why.

Extended periods of unregulated blood sugar can permanently damage the blood vessels in your body, including your ears. Damaged blood vessels in your ears cause permanent harm to the hair cells which require steady blood flow to function.

When someone is suffering from hearing loss, they often delay seeing an audiologist because of the negative misconceptions that surround hearing aids. The truth is that hearing aids can (literally) change the way you hear the world and improve your overall quality of life.

Here are some common myths about hearing aids that the experts at Audio Help would like to debunk, and share with you the truth about hearing aids.

As New Yorkers, we proudly claim our city to be the best in the land, full of opportunity and promise. Those of us with hearing loss have every reason to feel the same way. Forbes named New York City as the most accessible city in the country for people with hearing loss. Thanks in large part to the ever-increasing number of places featuring “induction loop” systems, New York offers an abundance of opportunity to better hear the sounds of the city.  

In New York, hearing aids also serve as wireless loudspeakers, delivering clear, personalized sound through these loop systems. Theatres, museums, subway information booths, places of worship, auditoriums and even taxis improve listening experiences throughout the five boroughs and metro area. Loop systems magnetically transmit sound to hearing aids with telecoils (T-coils), enabling hard-of-hearing New Yorkers to better process the world of sound around them, bringing the city more fully to life.

October is National Audiology Month, which means now is the perfect time to make your hearing health a priority.

More than 37 million Americans have hearing loss, with one in eight people having a significant aural impairment. More than half of those with hearing damage are under the age of 65.

Audio Help Hearing Centers in New York City, Scarsdale, New York, and Stamford, Connecticut encourage you to come in for a baseline screening and schedule annual appointments with an audiologist. Each of our locations offers complimentary consultations and hearing wellness screenings to new patients.

Most people know there are plenty of occupational hazards for first responders, but wouldn’t consider hearing loss to be among them.

Whether you’re a police officer, firefighter, paramedic, EMT or other first responder, there are plenty of ways for your hearing health to be compromised. Sirens, explosions, gunshots, roaring fires, exposure to hazardous materials and other common environments of the typical workday are far from ideal soundscapes for our ears.

One of the oft-ignored downfalls of live music is the danger it presents to our hearing.

Unless you’re at an unamplified performance – and even acoustic patio performers often use amplification – chances are live music is subjecting your ears to unsafe noise levels. It seems even relatively quiet, folk-leaning bands like to turn it up to 11 in concert, potentially putting the audience’s hearing at risk.

Audio Help Hearing Centers in New York City and Stamford, Connecticut remind you that noise levels above 85 decibels (dB) – roughly the sound of heavy city traffic at street level – can cause hearing loss. Many live concerts easily exceed that, weighing in at 100 decibels or more depending on the venue and your proximity to the speakers.

When we think of careers hazardous to hearing, we usually think of loud machinery, such as manufacturing, construction, industrial jobs.

What about those working with children?

Recent studies have shown that teachers have a significantly higher risk of hearing loss than other professionals. Why? It seems the daily exposure to common school sounds such as loud gymnasiums, chatter-filled classrooms, cafeterias and hallways, bells ringing and slamming lockers takes its toll on hearing in a number of ways.

If you experience tinnitus, you know the ringing has a way of affecting life as you know it.

The ringing in your ears may be there all the time, only in the quiet moments, or come and go at seemingly random times. Depending on its severity, it can make be difficult to ignore.

There are a number of risk factors for hearing loss that may surprise you.

Factors such as old age, exposure to excessive noise or brain injury may be more obvious reasons for hearing impairment. Audio Help Hearing Centers in New York City and Stamford, Connecticut offers the following information on why other less obvious risks should also be considered.

Dealing with hearing loss isn’t easy, particularly when you are just coming to terms with the impairment.

Audio Help Hearing Centers in New York City and Stamford, Connecticut hosts monthly aural rehabilitation classes to provide an open, supportive environment with other individuals in similar situations. The offerings are ideal for patients who have purchased new hearing aids and may be struggling to communicate effectively.

The classes aim to improve quality of life through addressing hearing loss and its impact on personal relationships, employment, hobbies and more. Part of the classes’ focus is looking at how the brain is impacted by hearing loss and how it can be “retrained.”