Affordable Hearing Aids

A hearing aid can be a life changing thing, helping those with hearing loss to restore their hearing. Experiencing hearing loss can be frustrating, making it harder to communicate with friends, family and at work, and taking some of the joy out of hobbies like watching movies and listening to music. A hearing aid can help you overcome these problems and get back the joy of music and the sounds of the voices of your loved ones. 

While hearing aids may not seem like a purchase you’re ready to or need to make, when you consider the consequences of untreated hearing loss, they are a worth investment in your health. Untreated hearing loss can impact your social life, emotional health and contributes to cognitive decline.

Research and development

A big part of the reason hearing aids is such an investment is that a lot of research and development time goes into creating cutting edge technology. Hearing aid technology has improved a huge amount in recent years, thanks to the hard work of audiologists to make the aids smaller, less conspicuous, more comfortable to wear, more powerful and with better sound quality. The constant development takes millions of dollars and a lot of work from electrical engineers, sound engineers, audiologists, computer engineers and programmers. 

Professional services

No matter how well a hearing aid has been made, it won’t work well for you if it isn’t properly fitted. In order to get the best sound and the most comfortable fit, your hearing aids should be fitted be a trained audiologist. 

In order to get the right device for you, your audiologist will conduct a thorough hearing exam, evaluation, fitting and programming of your hearing aid. This process can take a while, and of course, improves the overall experience. This time is well worth it as you’ll be left with a hearing aid that is adjusted perfectly to accommodate your hearing needs and will be comfortable to wear, even for long periods of time.

Customization

Another factor in the cost of hearing aids is the customization involved. Many high-end models are custom molded to your ear. This molding takes a lot of skill and effort, and is a time-consuming process, but provides the wearer with a much more comfortable fit. However, this expense is worth it, as you’ll end up with a hearing aid that is much more customized and tailored to your needs. A hearing aid that isn’t molded your ear can be uncomfortable if you’re wearing it for a few hours, making it unpleasant. 

The market

Hearing aids are actually a surprisingly small market. Considering the millions of Americans living in the country with hearing loss, a very small proportion of those actually wear a hearing aid. Hearing aids are costly to develop and make because of the intricate components they contain. This cost of production, combined with the relatively low demand for hearing aids keeps the cost of the technology high, in order for the industry to have enough money to continue to invest in further development. 

Return policies and warranties

It is common now for hearing aids to come with some kind of money back guarantee and return policy. A hearing aid is an important medical device, so it's essential that the finished product is well suited to you. It should work properly, fit comfortably and actually improve your hearing. If you’re not happy with it, a good audiologist will want to help you solve the problem. This is why most hearing aids come with some kind of return policy or warranty agreement. 

These policies are great for you, the patient, but they’re not as good for the audiologists. A hearing aid designed for you can’t just be sold to another patient, so they lose out on the cost of the replacement. They also have to absorb the cost of the returned hearing aid, which adds to the higher cost of the devices. 

Your hearing aids are an investment in your health, which is why it’s important to find the right solution for your specific needs. Ongoing research means the technology is always improving, making for better solutions to hearing problems. The expertise to create and properly fit these important medical devices also justifies the investment. You want to invest in something as important as a hearing aid to ensure the best results and a reliable device that will last you a long time. A good hearing aid should last a long time and give you a much better hearing experience. To learn more about how a hearing aid could help you, call Atlantic Audiology at (401) 262-0170.