How to Care for Your Hearing Aids

Hearing aids are extremely beneficial devices for people who have hearing impairments. However, despite their usefulness, hearing aids are also delicate electronic instruments and can break if they are not cared for properly. Here are some excellent tips that can help you better care for your hearing aids.

1. Do not expose them to water

Water is one of the top things that can cause damage to your hearing aids. Some hearing aids are genuinely waterproof, but the vast majority are not. This means that in most cases, if you expose your hearing aids to water, for example, by dropping them in a pool or taking a shower with them, you could completely destroy them. Hearing aids are expensive to both fix and replace, so it is best to simply avoid exposing them to water.

2. Do not wear them while performing intensive exercise

Unless your hearing aids are specifically designed to be good for athletic performance, you could damage them during intensive exercise. This is because exercise such as running or playing soccer could cause them to fall out, or to get damaged by the sudden and intense movement changes. Further, sweat can accumulate on the hearing aids, which can also cause damage. So, in most cases, it is best to simply take your hearing aids out before performing intensive exercise.

3. Clean them regularly

If you do not clean your hearing aids regularly, then earwax can accumulate on them, and it can even get inside of them sometimes. This can reduce the overall performance of your hearing aids. For this reason, it is much better to simply clean them regularly and prevent problems from happening. You can clean your hearing aids with a wax pick, or by gently rubbing a cotton ball over the outside of them. You can do this daily for optimal results.

4. Change your batteries regularly

This is advised because if you leave batteries in for too long, any trapped moisture can cause the batteries to corrode, which can potentially damage the hearing aids. You can prevent this problem by simply changing the batteries regularly.

If you are unsure how to properly care for your hearing aids, schedule an appointment with your hearing care provider. Your hearing professional will be able to review the best methods for cleaning and maintaining your hearing aids. Your hearing health specialist should also perform a professional hearing aid cleaning for your devices at least twice a year.