An estimated 28.8 million U.S. adults could benefit from hearing aids. In addition to clearer communication, hearing aids can also help keep you safe.
Two Ways Hearing Loss Affects Safety
When you think about safety sounds, things like fire alarms and emergency sirens are probably the first to mind, but they’re far from the only alerts hearing loss can dull. Smaller noises like a glass falling off your counter, warning shouts or even car tires screeching when you cross the street are essential to staying safe as you navigate the world.
One 2025 study found that hearing loss could also be a risk factor for falls. A study from 2013 supports those findings and lists three possible reasons for the increased risk:
- Decreased spatial awareness
- Increased cognitive effort required to communicate or understand your environment
- Simultaneous dysfunction of the hearing and balance organs
While hearing aids can’t address dysfunction in the balance organs, they may help with the other two causes.
How Hearing Aids Help
There are two broad ways hearing aids can help keep you safe: raising the volume of speech and offering greater background and spatial awareness.
Amplified Speech
Hearing aids help you catch every warning shout and safety instruction you encounter. That means you can duck before a ball flies your way in Aqueduct Park, understand all the safety rules at work and stop yourself from touching a hot pan when your partner lets you know they’ve been cooking.
Over the course of a day, the amplified speech will also help reduce the communication load caused by hearing loss, leaving you with more energy to focus on staying upright and steady.
Background and Spatial Awareness
Your devices can alert you to things like doorbells, barking dogs and the warning honk from a car in your blind spot when you change lanes. Not only will those background sounds help keep you safe, but they all inform your spatial awareness, potentially improving your balance.
Schedule Your Hearing Aid Appointment
If you’re ready to enjoy the safety benefits of hearing aids, contact Augusta – Aiken ENT & Allergy to schedule a consultation with one of our specialists. If you already have hearing aids, bring them in for a service & repair appointment! We’ll deep-clean your devices and ensure the settings are still delivering every sound you need to hear.