The ads are everywhere. If you’ve ever shown interest in hearing aids on social media or in a search, chances are you’ve been followed around the internet by hearing aid ads pitching cheap ‘hearing aids’ with no hearing test required.
Don’t be fooled. They aren’t hearing aids. They are Personal Sound Amplifying Products and they don’t do what hearing aids can do.
What’s the difference?
The cheap ‘hearing aids’ found online are generally Personal Sound Amplifying Products also known as PSAPs. They’re designed to enhance environmental sound (including background noise) for people without hearing loss, not to help people with actual hearing loss. And yet they tend to get marketed to those with hearing loss.
Misusing a PSAP as a hearing aid may be a problem for the future of your hearing. Not only do they not solve the specific hearing loss for a person, but they could also make your hearing worse. As an example, some PSAPs don’t have anything governing the volume they can amplify to, so you put your hearing at risk just through volume choices.
The sale of PSAPs in Canada is unregulated so you can be getting a product that doesn’t perform as you want, may be hazardous to your health and may have no satisfaction guarantee.
No hearing test means no professional assessment
If you see an ad for hearing aids that says no hearing test required, you’re getting the same level of hearing assistance as everyone else. Plus, you could be making things worse.
Your hearing loss is as unique as you are. Without testing, you don’t know if:
- Your hearing loss is caused by wax build up (that’s likely not improved when you shove something in your ear).
- You’re missing the high or low frequencies, or a combination of both.
- There’s a serious underlying medical condition that needs the care of an ear, nose & throat specialists also know as an ENT (otorhinolaryngologist).
But shopping online is so much faster and easier
Finding an ad for $99 hearing aids, or even $199 hearing aids, is just too good to be true.
Firstly, they aren’t hearing aids. They’re Personal Sound Amplifying Products (PSAPs). They simply amplify all the sounds around you, whether you need all of them amplified or not.
Secondly, in many cases these are manufactured offshore where health and safety of the user isn’t a priority.
Thirdly, with online shopping you don’t get to see and feel the product before purchase. And the seller may disappear after the sale.
Why hearing aids are worth it
Hearing aids are so much more discreet and effective than they used to be. Technology allows them to be programmed specifically to your hearing loss. Modern hearing aids can focus in one direction or many; they can selectively enhance the sound while reducing distracting background noise within the frequency of your hearing loss while leaving the sounds you can hear the same. Depending on your hearing loss properly fitted hearing aids make speech clearer without making things louder.
Modern hearing aids can connect to Bluetooth devices and many have apps that allow you some control over volumes and functions. Research has shown properly-programmed hearing aids can increase life satisfaction and improved health.
At Hear Well Be Well, you start your journey with a free hearing test so you get the right hearing solution for your unique needs. The comprehensive hearing testing, performed by a highly trained specialist, determines the right technology and programming for you to get the best of your hearing aids.
Included with your hearing aids are manufacturers’ warranties and the optional Hear Well Be Well Peace of Mind package so you know you’re covered for the future.
Don’t put your hearing at further risk with cheap, online ‘hearing aids’. Do what’s right for your hearing. If you suspect you’re experiencing hearing loss, contact us today for a free hearing test.