You’ve got a lively summer planned. Plenty of beach time and lots of swimming for sure. You’ll enjoy some live entertainment, you’ll get plenty of exercise jogging or possibly playing some tennis, then it’s time to hit the grill. Your schedule will be quite full. So it’s essential that your hearing aids are prepared.
Summer activities like these can be difficult on your hearing aids, but these little useful devices can be safeguarded without it halting your summer fun.
Summertime hearing aid obstacles
With hearing aids, each season will have unique difficulties. Climate and weather are the biggest challenges in the summer.
Summer-related obstacles might include:
- Wind: Your hearing aids can be pushed and pulled around by the wind if it’s strong enough. And if you’re in an especially dry climate, wind can also introduce dust and debris into your hearing aids.
- Moisture: Whether it’s from humidity, swimming, rain, or just sweat, moisture is just about always present during the summer. That’s problematic because moisture can be a major issue for hearing aids.
- Dirt and debris: You’re active during the summer. But sand inside of your hearing aid, like beach sand, can lead to problems.
For the most part, it’s pretty obvious why these issues are more common during the summer months: you’re usually outdoors more. And you’re more likely to experience a sudden rain storm or a strong wind when you’re outdoors so often.
Keeping your hearing aids at peak performance through the summer
Your hearing aids are designed to enhance your quality of life, to allow you to do more. Most individuals who use hearing aids will want to use them as much as possible, particularly through the summer. This means taking a few extra steps to care for the technology and make sure your hearing aids keep working.
Take actions to keep your hearing aids dry
We’ve established that moisture is the adversary of a well-functioning hearing aid (the more sophisticated the electronics, the worse water is). Protect against moisture with these tips:
- Don’t wear your hearing aids in the water. Going swimming? Sweet! Just remove your hearing aids first. Naturally, most individuals already do this. So residual moisture in your ears after you get out of the water is the real concern. That’s why you should consider using a swim cap and earplugs when you go swimming. This can help keep your ears (and thus your hearing aids) quite dry.
- Keep a microfiber towel handy. You can use this to periodically dry your hearing aids. In this way, you can prevent the build-up of wetness.
- Air dry your hearing aids at night by opening the battery compartment. This will help keep the battery from corroding and will decrease damage.
- When you’re performing an activity that will cause you to sweat, wear a sweatband. Your hearing aids will stay quite dry because moisture can’t get to them.
- Dry your ears thoroughly. Drying your ears totally will help avoid the unintentional transfer of moisture from your ears to your hearing aids.
Regularly clean your hearing aids
The growth of bacteria is quickened by moisture and heat. So you should also do a few things to ensure your hearing aids are remaining clean over the summer months. You can do the following:
- Store your hearing aids in a dry, cool place. That’s because hearing aids (as a general rule) don’t like exposure to direct sunlight and heat. So keep them off of your dashboard on hot days. Instead, when you’re not using them, keep your hearing aids in a cool, dry spot.
- Routinely disinfect your hearing aids. This can be done with specially produced antibacterial and disinfectant wipes.
- Watch for the long-term accumulation of debris. You can take a few minutes to remove any debris on your hearing aids while you disinfect them. Sooner or later, it’s probably also a good idea to have your hearing aids professionally cleaned.
Be happy, stay active, hear well
Your hearing aids are designed to accompany you throughout your life, and that’s definitely true of the summer months. So whether you’re planning on swimming in the lake, hiking over a mountain, or going for a walk around the neighborhood, there’s a way to make sure your hearing aids stay dry and keep working.