How to Stay Active Without Damaging Your Hearing Aids

young woman showing off her new blue hearing aids

One of the biggest issues with hearing aids is that they’re relatively small and need to sit comfortably on or in your ears to get the best effect. In everyday situations this really isn’t a problem. It’s not like you’ll be shaking your head or running around very often, so there’s no need to worry about your hearing aids falling out and being damaged when they drop to the ground.

But what if you’re an active type that loves sports? What if you run around a lot with your hearing aids on and you need to play sports with your hearing aids in to hear your teammates and other players? If that’s the case, then we’ve got a couple of solutions for you on how to stay active without damaging your hearing aids.

Avoiding Sweat Damage

One of the most common issues that you’ll face is sweat damage on your hearing aids. Being active and working out typically causes us to sweat. This liquid will usually fall down from our scalp and it can eventually reach our ears depending on how vigorous our activities are. The sweat can eventually get onto or even into the hearing aid, causing damage to the internal components and potentially blocking the microphone.

Because of this, it’s important that you do your best to keep sweat away from your hearing aids. It’s usually not possible to completely get rid of sweat damage, but there are ways for you to protect your hearing aids and ensure that the damage doesn’t get too bad. This usually means wearing some kind of sweat-absorbing headband to keep your ears as free of sweat as possible, but you might also want to consider sweat-resistant covers for your hearing aids if they are available. This is something that you can speak to your audiologist about before you decide to choose a suitable pair of hearing aids.

Make Sure Your Hearing Aids Fit

A lot of people don’t realize that their hearing aids need to be made to fit in order for them to be effective at increasing the volume of sounds around them. Your audiologist will likely ask you to try on a variety of different hearing aids to ensure that they can fit properly in your ear. You may also be given a chance to customize your hearing aids so that they fit correctly if you have a unique ear canal shape. Alternatively, you can wear behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids that hook onto the back of your ear instead of sitting in the ear canal.

If your hearing aids fit correctly then there’s less chance that they’re going to fall off and hit the floor when you’re using them for exercise or any sporting activity. A snug fit ensures that they’ll almost never fall out unless you’re doing something extremely vigorous. In addition to your hearing aids fitting correctly, you’ll also want to check that any headbands, helmets and other protective gear also fit correctly on your head. This ensures that your spotting equipment doesn’t damage your hearing aids.

Make Sure You Clean Your Hearing Aids After Using Them

If you’ve done everything you can to protect your hearing aids while they’re in use then you’ll also want to consider the ways that you can clean them after some kind of activity. Due to sweat, grime, dirt and other similar problems, you might find that your hearing aids can easily get clogged or dirty after using them. This can block the speakers which lower the volume of your hearing aids, but it can also block the microphone which reduces the effectiveness of your hearing aids. With the right care, you can ensure that your hearing aids never suffer from any form of damage.

To remedy this, we recommend that you clean your hearing aids on a regular basis and keep them stored in a dry location whenever you’re transporting them. This helps to ensure that your hearing aids don’t get damaged from moisture, and it also helps them dry quickly when they’re not being used. Cleaning them typically doesn’t require special tools, but you may want to speak with your audiologist to ask for tips on how to carefully clean your hearing aids to avoid permanently damaging them in the future.

If you’d like to learn more about hearing aid care or are looking for a new pair of hearing aids that can be used during sports and similar activities, then don’t hesitate to get in touch with our specialists from The Hearing Doctors at (630) 315-2899.