If we asked you what your favorite sounds were, how would you answer? You might say the sounds of your loved ones’ voices or your favorite song. These are some of the top answers from a survey given by Widex. Another popular sound was birds chirping/singing.
About the Survey
The hearing aid manufacturer Widex surveyed 1,621 adults ages 40 to 70 in the USA, UK, Canada, Germany, France, Japan, China and South Korea. They asked participants to select the sounds that mattered most to them.
In most countries, music and voices were at the top of the list. The third most popular sound was that of birds. In fact, 75% of the countries polled had birds in their top three, and 42% of respondents listed bird song as their favorite nature sound.
The Impact of Hearing Loss
Many people with hearing loss can’t hear the sounds of birds, and some do not even notice they’re missing this beautiful sound. This is because hearing loss often progresses so gradually, you don’t even realize you have it until it has advanced to a severe stage.
In addition, the sound of birds is high-frequency, a range of sounds that is usually the first to go as you develop a hearing loss.
Do You Have Hearing Loss?
If you suspect you may have hearing loss but aren’t sure, here’s one way you can potentially find out.
You can test your hearing by listening to these modified audio samples of birds. Each recording is played first at normal frequency, then adjusted to lower pitches. If the sounds become easier to hear as the clip goes on, you likely suffer from some degree of high-frequency hearing loss.
Hearing Aids Can Help
The best way to help you hear the sounds of birds again – along with all the other sounds you’ve been missing – is to wear hearing aids.
Hearing aids work by amplifying sounds to a level your ears can detect. Hearing aids consist of three parts:
- The microphone, which picks up sounds in your environment.
- The processor, which amplifies sounds to meet the exact specifications of your hearing loss.
- The receiver, which delivers the amplified sound to your ears.
While hearing aids are designed to help you hear speech frequencies, if you’re a frequent bird watcher at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, you can talk to your audiologist and have them create a special program that will allow you to hear the sounds of birds. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call ENT of Athens today.