Top questions to ask your audiologist

Even though sensorineural hearing loss is a condition that most often develops with age, it is not the only culprit. Hearing problems are actually very common among a large number of adults, people and children. Those affected by mild to moderate hearing loss most often opt to take an online hearing test to verify their condition. 

Hearing loss degrees, in decibel, are:

• Moderate hearing loss: 41 to 55 dB. 
• Moderately severe hearing loss: 56 to 70 dB. 
• Severe hearing loss: 71 to 90 dB. 
• Profound hearing loss: 91+ dB. 

The best way to improve our hearing naturally is to prevent hearing loss. To do this, it is suggested that you listen to music without earphones and at a moderate volume, avoid using cotton buds to clean your ears, take precautions when exposing yourself to loud noises and get checked often.

Although there is no single treatment to cure hearing loss or regain hearing, most types of hearing loss can be treated with professional hearing aids, adjusted based on your degree of hearing loss and general lifestyle. 

When it comes to ear health and care, a healthy ear is a clean ear.

For optimal ear care, make sure to exercise and eat these hearing-protective foods regularly: 

• vitamin b12, found in meat, eggs, chicken, dairy products and other animal-derived foods; 
• folic acid, found in spinach, asparagus, turnip greens, broccoli, beans, lentils and chickpeas;  
• omega-3, found in many fish (especially salmon), nuts, flaxseed; 
• magnesium, included in fruits and vegetables such as bananas, artichokes, potatoes, spinach, tomatoes and broccoli; 
• zinc, found in protein-rich foods such as beef, pumpkin seeds, cashews, almonds, spinach and dark chocolate; 
• potassium, found in bananas, potatoes, spinach, lima beans, tomatoes, etc.

Below are a few of the many possible causes for hearing loss:

• severe stress 
• rupture of the eardrum; 
• inflammation of the middle ear; 
• presence of foreign bodies in the ear, such as earwax plugs;
• inflammation; 
• water in the ear canal; 
• infectious diseases; 
• absence or malformation of the pinna, ear canal, or middle ear;
• infection of the ear (otitis media) or ear canal (otitis externa); 
• allergies; 
• benign tumors

The audiometric examination is a test that detects hearing impairments. By delivering one sound at a time to the subject, the audiometry test can determine the minimum volume, or intensity, necessary for the subject to hear each tone. For young adults, the test begins by delivering a sound at 1000 Hz. Based on the subject’s response, this sound is then reduced until a minimum intensity is reached and no sound is heard. 

Once the minimum thresholds of acoustical hearing are determined, with a red line for the right ear and a black line for the left ear, they are cross-referenced to detect hearing abnormalities and monitor their progress over time.

To find out more about the cost of hearing aids, you will need to consider several aspects and seek the help of an ENT specialist. 

First and foremost, what does your ENT specialist recommend? Your doctor can give you helpful advice depending on your degree of hearing loss and the morphology of your outer ear.

What's your lifestyle? Do you lead an active life? Often use your mobile phone? Do you want to hear your TV better? Do you prefer latest generation digital or rechargeable hearing aid models? Depending on your lifestyle and your listening needs, the hearing aid type that suits you best changes.

It's important to treat your hearing aids with extreme care so that they last a long time. As hearing aids are an everyday use item, here are a few hearing aid care and maintenance tips to keep in mind:

• Keep them clean and dry at all times; 
• Clean them daily; 
• store them in a hearing aid maintenance kit;
• remove them before going to bed, swimming or showering 

To find out which hearing aid best suits you, you can often take advantage of free trial periods. With Amplifon, you can choose from a wide range of hearing aids and test them out for 30 days. Not to mention, you can also take advantage of the various services and financing options available.