Bilateral Hearing Loss: Two Hearing Aids Are Better Than One

This article was found at www.healthyhearing.com. Click here for the original article.

Binaural simply means “two ears” – which is what nature gave you. Two ears are, indeed, better than one for a number of reasons.  So when your audiologist says that you are experiencing bilateral hearing loss, you may want to consider two hearing aids - because two are more powerful than one.

Just like our eyes, our brains are wired to receive sound from both ears. Many first time hearing aid wearers think starting with just one hearing aid may be easier to adjust to or save them some money; however, two hearing aids are truly better than one.  Here are some reasons why: 

• Better localization – the ability to tell where sounds are coming from

• Better hearing in background noise 

• Better sound quality (“mono” versus “stereo”)

• Better hearing for soft sounds such as children’s voices and sounds of nature

• Less strain on you while listening - with only one hearing aid you may often strain to hear various sounds and become fatigued, with two hearing aids listening is more relaxed

• Listening balance – you won’t be turning your “good” ear to hear

• Higher success and satisfaction - studies indicate people who wear two hearing aids are much more satisfied with their hearing aids.

Studies have also shown when only one hearing aid is worn and the other ear is deprived of sound, the use it or lose it principle applies, causing the onset of auditory deprivation in the non-amplified ear. 

So, you may save a few dollars by going the one-hearing-aid route but you may also find that one hearing aid causes more trouble than what your savings is worth.