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Any time that you go to the doctor, you take your health into your own hands. However, more and more people are deciding that the best way to protect their health is to go to a big box store like Costco instead. While they have kiosks and access to some medical equipment, the fact of the matter is that they offer inferior services compared to an audiologist.

High Quality Product

One of the first reasons that you will want use go to an audiologist rather than a big box store is that they have access to some of the best medical equipment that money can buy. Although a box store will be able to give you access to some decent hearing devices, the simple fact is that audiologists are actually trained to adjust the product for the individuals. If you have any feedback, then it can be eliminated through careful adjustments, whereas with a box store you will find that you will have more trouble hearing as well as you want.

Cost Effective Measures

Another aspect of hearing health that many people overlook when they put their hearing health in the hands of big box stores like Costco is that it is much more expensive to work with them. While they will entice you with the low prices on the boards outside, once you have had your hearing aid fitted and placed into your ear, they will start to come up with many other payments that you must make. Fittings, referrals, and adjustments are just some of the ways that they will keep digging into your wallet.

When you go to an audiologist, they will outline all of the payments that you need to make, and will often work in conjunction with your insurance company to make sure that you have the access to everything that you need. This keeps costs low, and the customer very happy.

A High Quality Of Care

The last reason that you should consider going to an audiologist over a big box store is the fact that they are professionals in their field. The audiologists have studied the inner ear more than any others, and have the ability to give you a medical diagnosis to determine why you are having hearing impairment or loss. It is always their goal to give you a better chance at living normally, while a big box store only cares about making a sale. The people at the kiosks are not professionals, and are looking out for business interests and not yours. These are just some of the reasons that you should always go to a trained audiologist rather than a box store.

If you ever heard the term 3D printing, you probably didn’t think it applied to hearing aids. Well, it does. The creation of state of the art hearing aids is made possible through the use of 3D printing. Although it’s nothing too brand new, it’s still a process that revolutionizes the industry thanks to the precision and ease of manufacturing it fosters. 3D printing has another name: additive manufacturing, which refers to the process of adding to something to build it up rather than take layers away with precision tools. When hearing aids are created using additive manufacturing, they make for a better fit and ensure the highest level of comfort for the recipient. It’s true that 10 million 3D printed hearing devices are being used by deaf or hearing impaired individuals at this moment.

Benefits of this Approach

This type of 3D printing has been gaining momentum in the industry due to the boost in the precision of the process. It’s actually used quite often in manufacturing, jewelry, art and electronics. The hearing aid business has been benefiting from the approach for many years, helping people all over the world hear better and feel more comfortable. Actually, 35 million Americans have a hearing impairment, and are thus benefiting from the science of 3D printing. Accuracy, speed and efficiency are at the forefront of this, along with customization – an integral component because no two ear canals are the same. Traditional manufacturing processes never could ensure a perfect unique fit for each user, so as a result, many imperfections were present that detracted from the comfort level for each person. The advent of 3D printing represents a big influence on the industry as a whole.

The Process

The whole process only takes a day to do, which is much less time than it used to take. In addition to the decrease in time for manufacturing, 3D printing offers a truly custom fit for the individual. The process begins with the creation of a pointcloud by an audiologist, which is really just a digital image of the ear using a laser scanner. A quality check is required, then the shell or mold is produced from the printer that is comprised of a resin material. This flexible material will fit inside the ear perfectly. But first, the acoustic vents, electronics and other components must be added, thanks to the benefit of nearly 150,000 points of reference obtained via digital cameras to apply the template to the mold. Audiologists can test a variety of geometric patterns and combinations prior to printing the final shell. Circuitry is then added, which is what is responsible for amplifying the sound. The proof shows in the millions of 3D printed hearing devices in circulation within the hearing impaired community currently.

One of the most important facets of your overall health is your hearing. There are many different ways that you can harm your hearing, and people have begun to take greater measures to prevent damage to their hearing. While they have started to avoid loud noises and have stopped digging in their ears with a cotton swab, some people have tried to do more to save their hearing. That is why we are going to take a look at the different foods that you can eat in order to save your hearing.

Dark Chocolate

Aside from being delicious, there are many health benefits that are offered by indulging in some moderate amounts of dark chocolate. It contains some great antioxidants as well as a great deal of zinc. Zinc can help the middle ear recover from damage that it incurs from repeated loud noises and other acute damage.

Vegetables

It turns out that everyone’s parents were right after all. Not only are vegetables delicious, but they offer many health benefits when it comes to your hearing. Broccoli and cauliflower are just two of the different vegetables that are packed with vitamins and free radical reducing elements. Not only can this save you from many different types of diseases, but it can prevent major illnesses such as cancer from taking root.

Going Bananas

Another one of the best foods to eat for your hearing health are bananas. Not only do they go well with breakfast and dessert, but they have tremendous amounts of magnesium and vitamins. Magnesium has the ability to help your ear build up a resistance to the damage that occurs by everyday living. Not only is this beneficial for your short term hearing, but it will save your hearing for many years to come.

Plenty Of Fish

One of the other important foods that you can eat in order to save your hearing for later in life is fish. They are full of Omega-3 fatty acids that will help your heart keep beating strong into your old age. Not only will increased heart rate result in better circulation around your body, but you will be able to have better bloodflow to the ears. This will prevent many forms of hearing loss from occurring due to a lack of available oxygen in the ears.

Citrus Fruits

Another one of the best fruits that you can eat if you are trying to protect your hearing health is citrus fruit. These fruits are full of vitamins that prevent infections from occurring in the body. The fewer infections that you are exposed to throughout your life, the better chance you have at keeping your hearing health intact.

One of the most devastating ailments from which you can suffer is hearing loss. Not only can it result in widespread inability to enjoy life the way that you used to, but it can also cause many other types of ailments. Since there has been new research into the overall effects of hearing loss, it has been discovered that a new threat has emerged: depression. We will examine the effects of depression upon hearing loss as well as the different ways that you can try to prevent this from occurring.

Prevention

While there is little information as to what can be done to avoid most forms of depression within the population, there is a great deal that can be done to prevent hearing loss. Of course, one of the first things that people should be doing is taking greater measures in order to avoid loud noises. This can be simple for most people, and with hearing protection added on the job, it can be easy for just about everyone. This will prevent you from giving depression the grounds to form within you.

How Does It Occur?

One of the things that most people want to know about hearing loss that is related to depression is how it forms within the human body. The simple answer is that there are two very distinct possibilities. First, the human brain can have certain areas choked off from blood and nutrient flow if you suffer from hearing loss. This is a suspected means of causing depression that has not been proven, but is believed to be effective. Another way that you can suffer from hearing loss and depression is the fact that you cannot communicate with family members or friends like you used to be able to. This can lead to you becoming more withdrawn and less likely to participate in events that make you happy, resulting in depression.

Study

The study that was revealed this link between hearing loss and depression was performed using 18,000 volunteers to test and track their hearing loss. Once it was reported or tested, depending on their ages, the individuals were given a questionnaire that was meant to expose any depression symptoms that they may be feeling. The results were very interesting in that they proved that there is a correlation between hearing loss and depression.

Some of the most significant findings were that the people who were under 70 had a higher prevalence of hearing loss, but the same prevalence of depression as those over the age of 70. This rate of depression among those with hearing loss was a great concern and will continue to be monitored in future research.

Cleaning your ears out from wax is a vital through somewhat unpleasant part of maintaining your overall health capacity. Unfortunately, most people are willing to clean their own ears despite using tools that do not work and without any knowledge of the damage that they can do to their hearing. Here we will examine the three ways that people use most often to clear their ears and why they are wrong. This article will also look at why you should only go to a licensed professional to have your ears cleaned.

Ear Candles Are A Waste Of Time

The ear candles have grown in popularity over the last few years. While they seem like they may work, there is no scientific backing for the things that they propose. The concept is that the candle wick in the hollow candle will heat up and allow enough wax to melt that it will form a vacuum. This will create a suction from which the wax cannot escape, and then the plug will allow the user to pull out the ear wax. However, this does not work, and people often burn themselves trying these devices.

Going To A Doctor

The best method for removing your ear wax is going to a doctor and having them do it for you. They can take their time examining your ear and determining the reasons for your discomfort. Once they have diagnosed you, they can use special tools to remove the wax quickly and with as little damage as possible. Then they will give you future appointments to get you to come back and have regular cleanings.

Cotton Swabs Are Not Much Help

These nifty little tools can often do more harm than good when it comes to removing ear wax. While the cotton makes it perfect for pulling our wet wax from your ear, it also pushes other bits of wax deeper into your ear, which can cause temporary deafness by impaction. Many people do not know when to stop and can puncture their eardrum, causing permanent damage.

Drops Can Help

Ear drops are another way that people try to treat their ear wax at home. This often requires them to drip the formula into their ear, wait, and then see what comes out when they tilt it the other way. While this can help provide moderate relief, most people see the wax coming out as an invitation to dig around for more wax, leading to more impactions and complications with their hearing.

Going to work should be a source of completion and happiness for people around the world. Jobs not only give the worker money, but provide a valued service to people in their area. However, many jobs come with the hidden threat of hearing damage that can lead to impairment symptoms. Here we will examine some of the noisiest jobs and see how they can impact a person’s health and what you can do to stop this from occurring.

Mining Jobs

Working beneath the earth is one of the most dangerous jobs in the entire world, and it has been for centuries. However, with the advent of heavy machines and explosions used to help clear a mining area, it is also one of the noisiest jobs that a person can have. While hearing protection can help in these areas, the sheer concussion force that some people are exposed to can still cause hearing loss.

Farming

Another one of the most valuable jobs that a person can hold is farming. After all, planting and harvesting food takes extraordinary amounts of time and patience. It also requires that the farmer is exposed to several hours of incredibly loud noises as they operate tractors and other threshing machines to complete the jobs in days instead of weeks. Not only is this job dangerous, it can harm your hearing permanently.

Airport Ground Crew

Working around planes can also be one of the most harmful jobs for your hearing health. The constant sound of planes taking off and landing exposes people to sounds that could potentially deafen them if not for the noise-dampening headphones that they have to wear. However, if they forgot them for even one plane landing, their hearing could be damaged forever. S

Military Positions

One of the most dangerous jobs in the entire world is working in the military. Even when you are not on the front line of the battle with bullets and artillery, there are many different ways that you can suffer hearing loss. Between planes and helicopters taking off and heavy machines being used to transport goods, military men and women are subjected to tremendous amounts of loud sounds.

Construction Positions

Another job that can lead to a high degree of hearing loss is construction. Whether you are working to repave a road or hammering on a roof throughout the entire day, there are many dangers that are abound for your hearing. These sounds are not as loud as those which are found in other areas of industry, but the prolonged exposure can lead to severe hearing loss.

Most people go to the movies without ever considering what would happen if they were not able to listen to the movie. Sadly, this is the case for thousands of people around the world who suffer from various forms of hearing loss. These individuals must wait until the film comes out on DVD in order to have a good idea what the story is about. Fortunately, there has been new closed–captioning glasses released that will help these people enjoy movies while they are still in the theater.

Comfortable Design

These closed-captioning Access Glasses are made so that they will fit around the majority of people’s heads comfortably. They can also be worn over prescription glasses without any drawbacks. The glasses resemble a pair of sunglasses with the detectors on both sides of the rims which pick up the close captioning signals. They are very lightweight, and will not cause fatigue when worn for hours at a time.

Where Can You Find Them?

Currently, these glasses can be found at 6,000 different screens as a part of Regal Cinema’s promotion period. There is no news on how long the test phase will last and whether it will result in more widespread usage, but most people are convinced that the future of these glasses is dependent on the crowds they draw.

Conceptual Fixtures

These Access Glasses were developed by Sony Entertainment in partnership with Regal Cinemas. They have been the dream project of Randy Smith, a chief administrative officer who has a son that is hearing impaired. After years of testing other glasses, he remains optimistic that these will be the future of closed captioning in movie theaters.

The Way They Work

Each pair of access glasses has many features that make them incredible for people who suffer for hearing loss. The glasses can be adjusted to help you see the captions from just about any point within the theater, though most people have noted that the best captions come when you are in the middle.After the customer service individual adjusts the glasses to fit your needs, the projection device sends out a signal that will generate the captions in your visual field. This will allow you to see the captions projected about ten feet in front of your eyes. This will allow you to comfortably view the movie while reading the captions. For people who suffer from hearing loss, this is a great step forward in enjoying films with as few problems as possible.

One of the greatest advances in helping individuals with hearing loss is hearing dogs. While dogs for guiding people who are blind have been around for many years, it is only in the last decade that hearing dogs have emerged as a means to help individuals get through their daily life. As a result, many Labradors and Retrievers have been trained with the sole purpose of helping people who having hearing loss. We will take a look at the ways that they can help their partners as well as the training methods that produce these animals.

Pet Requirements

Of course, when it comes to training these hearing dogs there are some rules and regulations that you must follow. First, you must be at least 18 years old and have the ability to show that you have a home that is capable of sustaining a dog. Then you must also furnish a friend or another person who can help you with all of the in-home training that must occur before you get the dog. Once you file the application you must attend canine training and then annual training if you are successful in obtaining one of these dogs.

Training

The training program that is required by the dogs is done in an intense period of four or six months depending on the dog’s temperament. They can be trained to help in all aspects of someone’s life by being trained to identify and respond to many sounds. These usually include a door knock, smoke alarms, and microwaves going off. After being placed for a time, these pets can pick up additional sounds that are specific to one’s daily life.

How They Help Individuals

After the dog has been placed with their hearing partner, they still need to have some personalized care training to make sure they both are a good fit for one another. With the initial training complete, there are many services that the dogs can help individuals with, allowing them to have greater independence in their lives. They can communicate situations that occur inside the house as well as on the street.One of the best examples of this happening is when you are walking you hearing dog and they hear an alarm from an ambulance. While they are not trained to identify this sound, the change in their body language will clue you into the fact that something has changed. This happens quite often when a hearing dog is placed with an individual: they change their behavior to modify it for your life, and you will begin to see the small changes in temperament that let you know that there is an occurrence.

One of the facets of health that people often forget is that hearing is tied to the overall function of the body. As such, there have been many studies that have sought to link the certain body conditions with the ability to hear. One of the results found that there are certain unhealthy habits in which people participate that can cause long term harm to your hearing abilities. We will take a look at this specific habits and the damage that they can do to your health.

Smoking Cigarettes

One of the greatest unhealthy habits that harm people’s hearing is smoking. Aside from causing cancer as well as heart disease, smoking has a potent, negative effect on your hearing health. The chemicals that are released into the bloodstream can cause the dulling of receptors that are responsible for hearing low pitch sounds. This damage is acute and is only reversible in some cases.

Sedentary Lifestyle

Another one of the unhealthy habits that can harm you hearing is living a sedentary lifestyle. This is defined as eating food that has bad nutritional value and getting no meaningful exercise. This puts a person at a much higher risk for diabetes and heart disease, both of which can cause circulation problems. With poor circulation, the brain and ears can be deprived of oxygen and nutrients that are needed to maintain proper hearing.

Listening To Music On MP3

Everyone likes to use an MP3 player to get them through a boring walk or an exercise program. However, there are certain risks that are posed by using one of these devices. Primarily, the headphones that are coupled with these music players channel sound directly into the inner ear, where loud noises can cause damage. This often leads to chronic hearing problems and symptoms such as tinnitus.

Hearing Many Loud Noises

One of the other unhealthy habits that can lead to hearing loss is by exposing yourself to too many loud noises. This will happen throughout your everyday life, whether it is hearing a car start up or engines starting over and over. Over time, these noises can cause damage to the inner ear and affect your hearing in chronic, acute, but typically non-severe ways.

Failing To Visit Your Doctor

The most important thing that an adult can do is to make time to see their doctor for regular checkups. They will be able to track any changes in your hearing over time and then give you options for treatment if anything changes. You will also be able to get advice from them concerning ways to keep your body healthy as well.

Acute external otitis is an infection of the outer ear canal – the portion outside your eardrum. More people recognize it by its common name – swimmer’s ear. It was named “swimmer’s ear” because it’s often a result of water staying in the outer ear following swimming, which provides a moist environment that promotes microbial growth. But water is not the only culprit. Acute external otitis can also be attributable to harming the delicate skin lining the ear canal by placing fingertips, cotton swabs or other objects in the ear. Thankfully swimmer’s ear is easily cured. If left untreated, swimmer’s ear can cause severe complications so it is essential to recognize the symptoms of the infection.When the ear’s innate protection mechanisms are overwhelmed, the result can be swimmer’s ear. Moisture in the ears, sensitivity reactions, and scrapes to the lining of the ear canal can all promote the growth of bacteria, and cause infection. Activities that raise your likelihood of developing swimmer’s ear include swimming (especially in untreated water such as that found in lakes), aggressive cleaning of the ear canal with cotton swabs, use of in-ear devices such as “ear buds” or hearing aids, and allergies.Mild symptoms of swimmer’s ear include itching inside the ear, minor discomfort or pain made worse by tugging on the ear, redness, and a colorless fluid draining from the ear. In more moderate cases, these problems may progress to more severe itching, pain, and discharge of pus. Extreme cases of swimmer’s ear are accompanied by symptoms such as fever, severe pain which may radiate into other parts of the head, neck and face, swelling redness of the outer ear or lymph nodes, and possibly blockage of the ear canal. If left untreated, complications from swimmer’s ear can be quite serious. Complications may include temporary hearing loss, long-term ear infections, deep tissue infections which may spread to other parts of the body, and cartilage or bone loss. Therefore, if you have experienced any of these signs or symptoms, even if minor, see your health care provider.During your appointment, the doctor will look for signs of swimmer’s ear with an otoscope, which allows them to look deep into your ear canal. Doctors will also make sure that your eardrum has not been damaged or ruptured. Doctors usually treat swimmer’s ear first by cleaning the ears thoroughly, and then by prescribing eardrops to remove the infection. If the infection has become extensive or serious, the physician may also prescribe antibiotics taken orally.To protect yourself from swimmer’s ear, dry your ears completely after swimming or showering, avoid swimming in untreated water resources, and don’t insert foreign objects into your ears to clean them.

Among the sometimes bothersome things about being a hearing care specialistis that a lot of the conditions we deal with which have caused our patients to lose their hearing can’t be reversed. For example, one of the most common causes of hearing loss is damage to the very small, sensitive hair cells that line the inner ear and vibrate in response to sound. What we think of as hearing are the translations of these vibrations into electrical impulses which are sent to and interpreted in the brain.These hair cell structures have to be very small and sensitive to do their jobs correctly. It is precisely because they are very small and sensitive that they are also easily damaged. The hair cells of the inner ear can become damaged as a result of exposure to loud sounds (causing noise-induced hearing loss, or NIHL), by certain medications, by infections, and by aging. In humans, once these hair cells have become damaged or destroyed, they can’t be regenerated or “fixed.” As a result, hearing professionals and audiologists have to treat hearing loss technologically, using hearing aids or cochlear implants.Things would be a lot less complicated if we humans were more like fish and chickens. That may seem like an odd statement, but it’s true, because – unlike humans – some fish and birds can regenerate the hair cells in their inner ears, and thus regain their hearing once it has become lost. For reasons that are not fully understood, zebra fish and chickens(to name just two such species) have the ability to spontaneously replicate and replace damaged hair cells, and thus attain full functional recovery from hearing loss.Bearing in mind that this research is preliminary and has as yet produced no proven benefits for humans, some hope for the treatment of hearing loss comes from research called the Hearing Restoration Project (HRP). The non-profit organization, Hearing Health Foundation, is currently conducting research at laboratories in the United States and Canada What the HRP scientists are attempting to do is isolate the compounds that allow this replication and regeneration in animals, with the ultimate goal of discovering some way of stimulating similar regeneration of hair cells in humans.Because there are so many distinct compounds mixed up in regeneration process – some that assist in replication, some that impede it – the scientists’ work is slow and challenging. But their hope is that if they can isolate the compounds that enable this regeneration process to happen in avian and fish cochlea, they can find a way to stimulate it to happen in human cochlea. The scientists in the various HRP laboratories are following different approaches to the problem, some pursuing gene therapies, others working on the use of stem cells, yet all share the same goal.Our entire team extends to them our best wishes and hopes for their success, because absolutely nothing would thrill us more than being able to completely heal our clients’ hearing loss.

Making purchases on the internet is not only an easy way to buy things, but it the convenience of it is unmatched. Whether you are looking to acquire toys, phones, or even furniture, you can find almost anything you are looking for online. The biggest drawback to this is that people abuse the convenience of online shopping by purchasing remedies and medicines without any information about how they work or what they do. This convenience has led to an increasing number of consumers purchasing hearing aids online, most of which are low quality knock offs. Here we will discuss many reasons why you need to consult a professional for your hearing aid needs.

Your Doctor Can Save You Money

When you purchase a hearing aid online, you remove the most important part of finding a solution for your hearing issues, which is the diagnosis. You can experience hearing problems from a wide variety of issues including curable events such as an infection or ear wax buildup. By purchasing a hearing aid online you could potentially put out a ton of money for a product you may not need in the first place. Visiting your doctor for a hearing exam can prevent this from happening.

Quality Matters

When it comes to quality, purchasing a hearing aid online is not a good idea since you do not know exactly what you will be receiving. Hearing aids are a sensitive technology that requires proper adjustments. When you purchase one online, you run the risk of receiving a low quality hearing aid, or a simple sound amplifying device that will do very little to help you with the underlying hearing problem.

Hearing Aids Should Fit Comfortably

It is important that a hearing aid is comfortable and form fitting. A doctor will match you with a custom fit hearing aid solution that will ensure that it first comfortably and is sized properly. Most online sites sell hearing aid products that are supposed to fit everyone and can be painful to wear.

Specialty Hearing Needs Are Not Found Online

A doctor will run a battery of tests to determine what your exact hearing needs are. These tests will show if you have a specific deficiency or weakness in your hearing, as well as determine if you have a problem with certain frequencies. This gives you the advantage of having a professional to customize and adjust your hearing aid to compensate for your hearing loss. When you purchase one on the internet, you give up the option of having a custom hearing aid made for your specific needs, and are without the option to have your hearing aid adjusted if necessary. This means you will be given a product that makes things seem a little better, but does nothing to help your underlying hearing problems.

Summer is one of the most beloved times of year. In no other season is there such a desire to be outside in the warm summer air with your family and friends. With so many nice sports and attractions to go through during the season, it is hard to imagine that these common summer sounds can cause hearing loss. Here we will take a look at the most dangerous noises that occur during summer and how you can save your hearing from them.

Fireworks

One of the best ways to celebrate the summer months is by kicking back and enjoying the sites of some fireworks. While these are usually reserved for town celebrations or for holidays, they are always a welcome sight. However, each explosion can produce an ear-ripping 150 decibels of sound. The average human beings pain threshold is around 85 decibels, which is also the point where damage begins occurring.

Machine Noises

Another one of the most common summer sounds that can cause hearing loss comes from machines being used to manicure lawns. From a lawn mower roaring in the morning, to weed whackers and edgers being used by landscapers, each machine can produce a mind numbing amount of noise. Hearing damage from this source is not acute in most cases, rather, it is a culmination of long term exposure.

Sports Events

Perhaps the best part about summer is taking in a good sporting event and relaxing with the family. While a soccer match is not going to harm your hearing, a motorsport can produce decibel levels that are high enough to cause discomfort and damage. Long term exposure to the roar of an engine can cause permanent hearing impairment, though it will not usually present symptoms for years.

Musical Concerts

Going to an all-day musical festival is one of the defining experiences of many youths. The ear thumping bass of a speaker that is made to reach the back of an arena will not do your hearing any favors, though. In fact, it can lead to acute and long term hearing loss as well as temporary deafness depending on how long you are exposed to the loud noises.

Saving Your Hearing

One of the best ways that you can go about protecting your level of hearing is through wearing earplugs. These plugs provide a physical barrier between the sound and your eardrums, preventing the high levels of decibels from harming your ears.

The other simple way to prevent hearing loss from common summer sounds is to expose yourself to fewer activities which can harm your hearing. For example, do not stay for an entire sporting event, and get seats far away from a fireworks display.