Daily Care of Your Hearing Aids is Very Important

Summer is here! Maintaining your hearing aids by daily care is important, especially in the summer months.  Warm weather brings increased heat and humidity. It’s not surprising that moisture can create problems for hearing aids.  With some extra TLC you can keep your hearing aids working well throughout the summer.

Here are a few tips to keep your hearing aids working well:

• Exposure to water, humidity and perspiration can harm your hearing aids.  Remember to take them out for the shower, pool or beach.

• At night open the battery compartment. This will increase the battery life and also allow the hearing aids to dry if they have picked up some moisture during the day.

• Store the batteries in a cool dry place. Batteries are affected by temperature extremes, so avoid the glove compartment in hot weather.

• Consider using a Dri-Aid kit or electric hearing aid drying box. 

• When applying sunscreen avoid clogging the openings on the hearing aids.

• If your hearing aids have “filters” change them on a regular basis.

• Be diligent about routine maintenance. When you remove the hearing aids at night, wipe them with a dry soft cloth.  

A little extra mindful care will assure you enjoy your hearing aids and the wonderful sounds of summer all season long.

Hearing aids require special care so that they function properly. Your audiologist can show you how to care for and check them regularly.

For Children with Hearing Loss, Listening can be Exhausting!

Listening takes lots of energy. Children with hearing loss may be extra tired at the end of a busy school day. Why is that? The job of understanding and processing the speech of parents, teachers and friends that’s been “filtered” through a hearing loss, especially in a noisy environments, requires a lot of work all through the day.

Hearing loss happens in the ears, but the real action is in the brain. The brain makes sense of the words picked up by the ears.

• Children are learning 24/7. Children with hearing loss should be fit as early as possible so they have access to all those sounds around them.

• A clear sound signal helps children learn.

• Having a hearing loss can be taxing – it takes hard work to listen.  The brain needs the best, clearest signal to understand what is being said.

• Hearing aids must be worn all the while the child is awake – at school and at home.  Having a clean comfortable signal provides relief – the child can relax and not work so hard to listen.

Remember, when a child has a hearing loss only part of the speech accurately reach the brain.  Noise is even more disruptive for children who have a hearing loss.  It takes extra work to follow speech when the brain has to guess and fill in the blanks. But new hearing aid technology, properly fit and used on a full-time basis, brings in a clean full speech signal for easier hearing and relaxed learning.

Click Here to learn more about pediatric hearing services.

Unsafe Use of Personal Audio Devices a Risk to Your Hearing

by Judy Rasin Au.D.

Judy Rasin Au.D.

When I was a child, I rode my bike without a helmet, and as a mom, I drove my toddlers without car seats.  Years ago I didn’t even use a seat belt!  I am not a risk-taker, but over the years we have learned how to be safer.  Things we didn’t even think about at the time seem like no-brainers to us now.

Many children and teens listen to music at sound levels high enough to damage their hearing.  Changing the listening habits of young people is urgent according to the World Health Organization. In fact, the WHO says that one billion people ages 12-35 are risking their ears with unsafe use of personal audio devices and exposure at concerts and bars.

Earbuds and headphones used at full volume (about 100 decibels) can damage hearing permanently.  Listening to levels below 85 dB is safe, even for long periods of time.  So to be safe, be sure to set the volume no more than 60% of the maximum.

Music at clubs and concert arenas can be unsafe.  Avoid being to near the speakers.  If you or your teens are going to be someplace where the music is likely to be loud, plan to protect your ears with appropriate noise protectors.  It’s important to be sure these are correctly inserted so they are effective.

At the Hearing Center we offer a range of custom ear protectors to ensure you hear safely and comfortably. These come in fun colors or clear, tailored to your needs, and individually fabricated just for you.


Judy Rasin is a licensed New York State Audiologist and hearing aid dispenser at The Hearing Center at Pelham. You can contact Judy at (718) 822-4100 or visit their website.