Better Hearing with Both Ears

Being able to hear with both ears is just as important as being able to see with both eyes. if you have difficulty hearing with both ears, you will almost certainly benefit from a binaural fitting - that is, wearing a hearing instrument in each ear.

What are the benefits of wearing two hearing instruments?

• Your ability to localize sounds will improve
• It will be easier to understand speech in noisy surroundings
• The risk of "auditory deprivation" is considerably reduced
• You will experience a fuller, more comfortable sound picture

Why do we have two ears?  Because our brain uses and needs input from both ears to figure out which direction sounds are coming from. Within seconds, our brain compares the information received from both ears - like the volume and timing differences - and is instantly able to tell us which direction a sound is coming from, and how far away it is.

Background noise makes it difficult for anyone to follow what people are saying. But add in any amount of hearing loss, and suddenly it becomes much more difficult to separate individual voices from background noise.  The brain needs input from both ears to be able to separate sounds effectively.

When an ear with hearing loss is not aided, the brain gradually loses some of its ability to process information from that ear because of a continued lack of sound stimulation.

If you hear equally well with both ears, sounds are more comfortable to listen to. You don't have to strain to hear, the sounds have the kind of clarity and depth which give you a sense of space and volume.