Surprisingly, it’s been over 10 years since most people have had a hearing assessment.
One of those individuals is Harper. She schedules a cleaning and checkup with her dentist every six months and she shows up dutifully for her annual medical exam. She even changes her timing belt every 6000 miles. But she never remembers to schedule her hearing test.
Hearing tests are essential for a wide variety of reasons, early detection of hearing loss being one of the more essential. Harper’s ears and hearing will remain as healthy as possible if she knows how frequently to get her hearing tested.
So, just how frequently should you have a hearing exam?
It’s disconcerting to think that Harper hasn’t had a hearing test in 10 years. Or maybe it isn’t. How old she is will greatly determine our reaction. Depending on age, guidelines will vary.
- If you are over fifty years old: Once a year is the recommended routine for hearing assessments in people over 50 years old. As you age, the noise damage you’ve sustained over a lifetime can begin to speed up, which means hearing loss is more likely to start affecting your life. In addition, there could be other health issues that can affect your hearing.
- If you are under fifty years old: Once every 3 to 10 years is recommended for hearing tests. Obviously, it’s fine to get a hearing assessment more often. But the bare minimum is once every decade. And you should be cautious and get tested more often if you work in an occupation that tends to be noisy or if you go to a lot of concerts. It’s quick, simple, and painless so why not come in?
You need to have your hearing checked if you experience any of these signs.
Undoubtedly, there are other occasions, besides the yearly exam, that you may want to come in for a consultation. Maybe you start to experience some symptoms of hearing loss. And in those instances, it’s important to get in touch with us and schedule a hearing exam.
Some of the signs that should prompt you to get a hearing exam include:
- You abruptly can’t hear out of one ear.
- You’re having a difficult time hearing sounds in higher frequencies like consonants.
- Sounds get muffled; it starts to sound as though you always have water inside of your ears.
- Asking people to slow down or repeat themselves during a conversation.
- Phone conversations are getting more difficult to hear.
- Cranking your tv or car stereo up to excessively high volumes.
- Difficulty hearing conversations in noisy environments.
When the above warning signs begin to add up, it’s a good sign that the ideal time to get a hearing exam is right now. The sooner you get your hearing checked, the sooner you’ll know what’s going on with your ears.
What are the benefits of hearing testing?
There are lots of reasons why Harper may be late in having her hearing test.
Perhaps she hasn’t thought about it.
It’s possible that she just doesn’t want to deal with it. But there are concrete advantages to having your hearing tested per recommendations.
We can establish a baseline for your hearing, which will help identify any future deviations, even if it’s presently healthy. If you can catch your hearing loss before it becomes noticeable, you can better protect it.
Detecting hearing problems before they cause permanent hearing loss is the exact reason someone like Harper should get tested regularly. Your ears will remain healthy longer by having these regular screenings. If you let your hearing go, it can have an affect on your overall health.