Celebrating World Hearing Day and Hearing Awareness Week 2025
Hearing Awareness Week is an annual event held in the first week of March, this year taking place from the 1st to the 7th. At the heart of the week is World Hearing Day on 3rd March, a global initiative dedicated to raising awareness about hearing health and the impact of hearing loss.
The theme for World Hearing Day 2025 is “Changing Mindsets: Empower Yourself to Make Ear and Hearing Care a Reality for All”, encouraging people to take charge of their hearing health. Hearing loss doesn’t just affect the ability to hear—it can impact communication, mental well-being, and overall quality of life.
Understanding the signs, treatment options, and proactive steps for protection is the first step toward a healthier, more connected future.
The Role of the World Health Organisation
The World Health Organisation encourages individuals to recognise the importance of ear and hearing health. It aims to inspire people to change their behaviour to protect their hearing from loud sounds and prevent hearing loss, check their hearing regularly, use hearing devices if needed, and support those living with hearing loss. The concept behind this is that empowered individuals can drive change within themselves and society.
The Impact of Untreated Hearing Loss
At Hearing Aid Specialists SA, we see how untreated hearing loss affects a person’s life. Hearing loss makes communication difficult, which can cause isolation, mental health issues, and even affect a person’s balance and cognitive function. The best way to minimise these effects is to recognise the signs of hearing loss and seek treatment early.
Signs of Hearing Loss
The signs of hearing loss can be subtle in the early stages. It can start with:
- Noisy situations being more challenging to hear in
- Mishearing what is said
- Turning the TV up
- Feeling like people are mumbling
- Finding listening is more tiring.
While it can be easy to write these symptoms off as being tired, places being noisy, the TV speakers getting older, and people mumbling, they can indicate that your hearing is not as good as it once was.
Hearing Loss Treatment Options
If you have hearing loss, treatment options may include medical management, communication strategies, and devices such as hearing aids or other assistive listening devices. At Hearing Aid Specialists SA, our audiologists and audiometrists work with you to provide you with the right treatment options at the right time.
Prevention Through Ear Care and Protection
Identifying and treating hearing loss is essential. However, some forms of hearing loss can be prevented by appropriately managing ear conditions or protecting one’s ears from noise exposure.
Ear conditions, such as ear infections, are often easily treated, and early treatment can prevent permanent hearing loss and other ear problems. Other conditions, such as wax occlusion, are also easily treated once identified. At Hearing Aid Specialists SA, we can remove wax from your ears or guide you on the appropriate next steps, depending on what is causing your hearing loss.
Protecting Your Ears from Noise Exposure
Noise exposure can have an accumulative effect on your ears. Even if you have previously been exposed to noisy environments, it is still essential to reduce further exposure. You can be exposed to loud noises through exposure to noise at work, using personal devices to listen to music loudly, using power tools, or attending events such as concerts or going to nightclubs.
Noise exposure can have an accumulative effect on your ears. Most smartphones have apps available that can measure the loudness of your environment. Once that sound level hits 85dBA, you are at risk of hearing loss once you have been in that noise for 8 hours a day. For each 3dB, the sound level goes up, and the safe listening time halves. So, at 88dBA, the risk of hearing loss starts after four hours; at 91dBA, it starts at 2 hours, and by the time the sound is at 100dBA, it only takes 15 minutes of listening to risk hearing loss. Without hearing protection, you risk damaging your hearing if you listen to sounds exceeding safe listening levels.
Protecting your hearing is crucial to preventing long-term damage. Fortunately, there are various ways to safeguard your hearing health. This can include using personal protective equipment, taking regular breaks in quiet areas, and having your hearing checked regularly by a specialist. By taking proactive steps, you can enjoy a lifetime of healthy hearing.
Take Action This Hearing Awareness Week
This Hearing Awareness Week and World Hearing Day, take a minute to consider the signs of hearing loss and book a hearing test if you think you may not be hearing as well as you should be. Also, think about the situations you spend time in and ensure you have appropriate hearing protection available for when you need it.
At Hearing Aid Specialist SA, we’re here to help. Whether you need a hearing test for yourself or a family member or need advice on hearing protection and looking after your ears, don’t hesitate to reach out and let our specialist team help you.
Contact us today today to schedule a consultation and visit us today at a clinic near you: North Adelaide l Ingle Farm l Castle Plaza l NorthPark l St. Agnes l Moonta l Gawler l Gilles Plains l Golden Grove l Munno Para l Angle Park l West Lakes | Kidman Park | Para Hills