Is there any advantage in wearing two hearing aids instead of one?

When both of your ears have a hearing loss, wearing two hearing aids is the most natural way to improve your ability to hear for several reasons.

First, being able to hear from both ears allows you to determine from which direction sounds are coming from. This can be important in both social and safety situations. For example, knowing which direction a speaker's voice is coming from helps you follow a conversation more easily in a crowd. Knowing the direction traffic is coming from can keep you safe while crossing a street or while walking through a busy parking lot.

Second, wearing two hearing aids provides you with improved hearing on both sides of your head so that you don't have to constantly turn your aided ear towards sounds or conversations that your unaided ear may have difficulty hearing.

Third, studies have shown that using two hearing aids can "squelch" background noise and improve your ability to hear conversations in noise by about 12%.

Finally, many people who use two hearing aids prefer the stereophonic quality they offer, especially in quiet. Just as a stereo sound system synthesizes sounds from two speakers, two hearing aids can provide you with a better sense of sound balance and quality.

There are certain circumstances when one hearing aid is appropriate. Your audiologist can help you determine whether one hearing aid or two would provide you with the best hearing quality for your situation.

Hanna M. Alexander, M.A. CCC-A
Audiologist
Member, South Bay Independent Physicians Medical Group, Inc.