Do You Need A Hearing Aid For Mild Hearing Loss?

When it comes to hearing loss, there are varying levels of loss. How much hearing loss a person has is measured against someone with no hearing loss. When you have a hearing test with your audiologist, they will be testing for even the slightest level of loss.

Any degree of hearing loss can be detrimental to your health in many ways, and while you might think that mild hearing loss doesn’t require hearing aids, it can still impact your quality of life.

What is Mild Hearing Loss?

Mild hearing loss is measured in decibels (dB) and is typically categorized into five levels: mild, moderate, moderately severe, severe and profound. Mild hearing loss is a loss of around 26-40 decibels (dBs). Hearing loss can affect one or both ears and can be classed as conductive or sensorineural hearing loss.

Damage or obstruction to the middle or outer parts of the ear causes conductive hearing loss, which prevents sounds from reaching the inner ear. Sensorineural hearing loss is caused by damage to the auditory nerve or the inner ear’s hair-like cells. The damage weakens the nerve signals or prevents them from being carried to the brain. Because nerve signals convey information about the clarity or volume of sounds, a blockage here changes the sound received or the quality.

How Does Slight Hearing Loss Affect You?

While you might not be too worried about mild hearing loss, the reality is it can have many effects on your life and impact you in different ways. From being unable to follow conversations or hear someone talking behind you to not being able to do your job as you can’t hear everything, you need to so you can ensure your safety and that of those around you.

A National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders study has also delivered a link between hearing loss and depression. Moderate to severe depression was higher in respondents to the survey in those with self-reported hearing loss than those without and was more common in women with moderate hearing loss who were more likely to experience depression.

Figures from the CDC also suggest that 28.8-million Americans can benefit from wearing a hearing aid. Of adults aged 18-69 who could benefit from a hearing aid, only 16% currently wear them, which is increased to 30% in those over the 70s.

The Benefits of a Hearing Aid for Mild Hearing Loss

 A hearing aid will magnify the vibrations of sound. These larger vibrations will be detected by the remaining hair cells and transmitted to the brain as neural signals. People with mild hearing loss can benefit from this amplification and thus from using a hearing aid. When patients with minor hearing problems wait too long to use an aid, their hearing problems may worsen.

Using a hearing aid sooner rather than later will benefit a patient’s hearing and, as a result, their quality of life. This is because a hearing aid will help to clarify sounds and reduce fatigue caused by having to expend so much energy listening. Some argue that untreated hearing loss may contribute to cognitive decline over time, and studies are being conducted to investigate this.

You will find you can work easier, communicate with others more and feel much more comfortable in social surroundings than you did without your hearing aid. This will also impact your mental health and help you overcome any anxiety or depression you may be experiencing due to your hearing loss.

What Hearing Aids Are Available for Mild Hearing Loss? 

These days, hearing aids have evolved into small technological devices that are equipped with a range of different features and benefits. You can choose a hearing in various styles with additional capabilities to work with you and your lifestyle.

From being Bluetooth equipped to being able to be controlled through an app or automatically detect the way, you are looking to focus on sounds in this direction while talking and reduce any background noise and interference; hearing aids are becoming more complex thanks to technological advances. Plus, with the different styles available on the market, you can find a really discreet hearing aid, so only you know you are wearing it!

Booking an appointment with an audiologist can get you started to find out what level of hearing loss you might be experiencing and the best hearing aid for mild hearing loss. To find out more about how a hearing aid can benefit those with mild hearing loss, contact us at the Audiology and Hearing Aid Center at (920) 486-6922!