"Hearing aids are ugly and clumsy! They look like  flesh-colored bananas sitting like a big lump behind the ear!"
Wrong! Today’s hearing aids are available in a wide range of shapes, colors and functions,  and are perfectly adapted to the needs of the wearer. Some devices fit unobtrusively behind the ear, some can be worn "invisibly" inside the ear. But all modern hearing aids are lightweight, neat, and highly inconspicuous.

"Hearing aids can only do one thing – they make everything louder!"
Wrong! Today’s hearing aids are far more complex than that. If they were simply an amplifier, they would indeed just make everything louder by the same amount – but that is not what we mean by "optimal hearing". Modern hearing aids operate selectively and intelligently: they only amplify where you want them to – in those frequency ranges where there are difficulties. The rustle of leaves or the crackle of a fire suddenly  become audible again …

"If I wear a hearing aid, my ‘hearing brain’ will become lazy and forget how to hear!"
Wrong! A hearing aid does not "spoil" your brain. It does not take away any of the work of the auditory command center, but instead brings its analytical abilities back to life again. Without stimulation across the whole spectrum of hearing experiences, these abilities wither away. A hearing aid restores "fitness" to your brain, so it is important not to leave too much time between the first signs of hearing loss and doing something about it.

"Hearing aids always whistle!"
Wrong! Older hearing aids whistled in that annoying way because of the "feedback effect". We are all familiar with this concept, for instance, when a microphone is moved too close to a set of speakers. Modern technology is able to remove the feedback and thus the whistling.

"It’s enough to wear just one hearing aid!"
Wrong! We have two ears for a reason: to give us directional hearing so we can pinpoint the source of a sound. For example, in a noisy bar we are able to focus on talking to one single individual. It is in these more complex situations (conferences, busy streets, family meals) where it is important for both ears to hear as well as they possibly can. In almost all cases, therefore, two hearing aids are better than one.

"Hearing aids are for old people!"
Wrong! A growing proportion of younger people are now suffering from hearing loss. The sooner the problems are compensated for by a hearing aid, the better the outlook for good hearing and under standing in old age. Quite apart from this, of course, a hearing aid restores much of a person’s enjoyment of life. People who have taken the plunge and have a hearing aid all agree: "I couldn’t do without it now!"

• Inside a hearing instrument
• Miracles of technology
• Different hearing instrument types
• Overcome preconceptions