May is Better Hearing and Speech Month. This month was created by the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA) in 1927 to raise awareness about hearing and speech disorders. It also encourages people to start thinking about their own hearing and getting it checked out. According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, 43 million Americans suffer from a speech, voice, language or hearing impairment.
Every year ASHA comes up with a theme to help raise awareness and educate others. This year’s theme is “Connecting People.” Each week in May, the public will be able to access services by audiologists and speech-language pathologists. Schools, inpatient settings, home-based care, and outpatient settings will be available for the public to access them.
The World Health Organization first World Report on Hearing stated that noise is being acknowledged now as a public health issue in today’s world. Twenty-eight million of Americans suffer from a hearing impairment because of their over exposure to loud noise. However, people still refuse to go see an audiologist for this problem. That is why it is so important to educate people on this problem.
Below are a few ways you yourself can raise awareness:
- Keep the volume below 60% when listening to music
- Encourage others to get their hearing tested. Only 20% of people report hearing loss and get their hearing checked.
- share educational material you find online on your social media accounts or blogs
- use noise cancelling earphones or headphones
- hang around a noiseless, calm environment
- talk about your own experience if you suffer from hearing loss
If you have recently noticed that you are suffering from a hearing impairment and want to get your ears checked, the experts at New Generation Hearing Centers are happy to help. Call today for a free consultation.