Apple AirPods Pro 2 hearing aids: Editor-in-chief’s thoughts

No matter why hearing loss develops, its negative effects are powerful. Research shows that hearing loss often leads to social isolation and loneliness, impacting mental, emotional and physical health. It can affect cognition, communication, and speech. In many cases, a person’s productivity and quality of work decrease.

And hearing loss is far more common than most people realize, with an estimated 2.5 billion people expected to suffer from hearing loss by 2050, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Currently, about 5 percent of adults ages 45 to 54 have disabling hearing loss, according to the National Institutes of Health and Other Communication Disorders Research Institute. The prevalence increases to 10% in adults aged 55 to 64 years, 22% in adults aged 65 to 74 years, and 55% of adults aged 75 years and older are affected.

It took a long, science-backed journey for Apple to reach this moment, including extensive research studies, certifications, and most recently, FDA approval.

Given how prevalent hearing loss is and how much it impacts our lives, we can all benefit from a hearing test, just as we would an annual eye exam or a regular mammogram. . But here’s the real story. When was the last time you had your hearing tested? For me, it was more than 30 years ago when I was a child at my pediatrician’s office for my annual checkup.

When you’re ready to rock and roll (but Shhhhhquietly), open your iPhone’s settings and select AirPods Pro.[聴覚の健康]in,[聴覚テストを受ける]Select.

You will need 5 minutes and a very quiet room. I did a test inside me women’s health I closed the door and went to the office, but was frustrated and couldn’t start the test because there was “too much noise.” (New York City buildings have a fair amount of white noise.) Basically, if there’s any ambient sound (even air conditioning, heaters, or fans), the test won’t start.

you have to be in it very Begin the hearing test in a quiet room.

Eventually, I found a completely quiet spot at work: an empty theater space.

Testing begins by verifying that the pods fit correctly. Importantly, the silicone ear tips create a seamless lock in your ear. If it doesn’t fit perfectly, you may be asked to resize it. (Mine was fine.)

The test begins with the left ear. Task: Tap the screen when you hear the audio sound. Each audio tone pulses three times and must be caught only once, touching the screen after each sound is heard. (I’m not a musician, but the best I can describe it is: Some notes are soft, some are loud, others are high pitched and almost whine-like, but some appear deep and powerful. These reflect different frequencies and decibel levels.) After a few minutes, the test moves to the right ear and repeats the same process.

I’m very competitive, so win In every test, I felt my heart rate increase as the sounds became harder to hear. But there is no way to “win” or “contest” this test by tapping faster or pre-emptively anticipating those sounds. Take a deep breath, relax, and tap when you hear the sound. Even non-technical people can handle this.

As soon as the test is finished, the results will be displayed on the screen. The “decibel hearing level” score for each ear is displayed. This is the volume required for the sound to be heard. There was no hearing loss.

Buy Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 on Amazon

I invited my husband, Matt, to join the experiment. He is a 45-year-old researcher. Technically, multiple family members can share a pair of AirPods Pro 2 for testing, but experts don’t recommend sharing what’s in your ears. (I love my husband dearly, but I still didn’t want earwax mixed in.)

My husband, Matt, works from home with Air Pods Pro 2. (He’s the police officer for this road test!)

Matt grew up with constant swimmer’s ear, frequent ear infections, and was always bothered by the changes in air pressure during airplane rides. A few years ago, he started noticing some hearing loss, especially on his right side, especially after travel or illness. Doctors told him he had “eustachian tube dysfunction,” which was made worse by flying, colds and the coronavirus.

Work, travel, three children, my dog, life-He has never undertaken a hearing test. And even if your doctor diagnosed you with hearing loss (circumstance or not), you didn’t necessarily want to be told you needed to buy and wear hearing aids. In many ways, he’s the perfect candidate to level up Apple’s health. He already wears AirPods Pro 2 regularly and is able to spare five minutes to take the test at home.

His left ear, on the other hand, was rated as having “little to no loss.” That’s considering how much we talk about his ears and how much our three kids and I tease him when he asks us to repeat things. parable Mild Hearing loss affects people. Moderate? strict? The impact will be greatly enhanced.

Matt took his second test. Because he’s a researcher and that’s what a researcher does. And I got almost the same score in both ears. Once your hearing test results are available, iPhone prompts you to enable Air Pods Pro 2 as a hearing aid only if it’s necessary for mild to moderate hearing loss.

My testing didn’t unlock that option, so Matt continued as a guinea pig and immediately started wearing the AirPods Pro 2/hearing aids around his apartment on days he worked from home.

“Hearing aids work great,” he texted me after a few hours of interacting with ambient sounds. But he also enjoyed how his audio consumption was affected. “Media Assist changes the volume of content like music and podcasts. It’s great,” he texted. In other words, it not only amplifies the sounds around you, but also changes the sounds you hear. (Users can adjust personalized settings for amplification, tone, and balance, as well as add ambient auditory aids to voice and speech using conversation boost settings.)

I didn’t feel comfortable wearing them in public places, like gyms and bars in my Brooklyn neighborhood. “You don’t want to seem rude by leaving them while you’re talking to them,” he said. I understand what he wants to say. I felt awkward just wearing it in the office in the afternoon. W.H. The staff responded. (My strategy: When I talked it over with my teammates, I quickly shared that I was testing the AirPods Pro 2 for the story, not the antisocial.)

Tried to have some work meetings at W.H. Experience one-on-one experience in the office while wearing AirPods Pro 2. W.H.Abby Shuster, Senior Digital Designer.

As people adopt AirPods Pro 2 as a hearing aid, we hope that the stigma of wearing AirPods Pro 2 in restaurants, movies, etc. will diminish. As much as it felt a little strange for all of us to wear face masks for a while in 2020, eventually it became like the norm. (Plus, is there anything more important than your health and safety? No!)

In addition to hearing testing and hearing aid features, Apple wants to help protect Improve your hearing before problems arise. One example: Active Noise Cancellation leverages AirPods Pro 2’s H2 chip-powered high-fidelity microphone and pro-level computational audio to rapidly detect and eliminate environmental sounds in real-time. Behind the scenes, some super smart acoustic algorithm software works with the hardware to filter out unwanted noise. (AirPods Pro 2 offers twice as powerful active noise cancellation as both the original AirPods Pro and the new AirPods.)

Another example: With the Apple Watch (FYI, I reviewed the new Series 10 last month), you can opt in to notifications about noise levels in your environment if they’re dangerously high. If you haven’t already turned it on, turn it on in settings. This can help you understand how often you are exposed to high-decibel noise and when you should step away from noisy environments.

Apple has added educational information about hearing loss/prevention to the Health app in case you want to learn more. Hearing protection features work with AirPods Pro 2 when paired with a compatible iPhone, iPad, or Mac running a modern operating system. The new hearing health feature will be available on both USB-C and Lightning charging models starting the week of October 28th, and the feature will be available in the U.S. and Canada.

The healthcare app also allows you to track your exposure to environmental noise over time. Hearing protection settings also allow you to enable features that reduce loud audio in your individual headphone settings. Note: Don’t rely on AirPods Pro 2 to protect your ears from impact. Really Firework-level noise exceeding 110 dB.

I say (Okay, I whisper voice) Let me state this emphatically and urgently: this device is worth investing in because it can positively impact your hearing for the rest of your life.

If you already own AirPods Pro 2, take a 5-minute hearing test as part of your self-care routine. (#mealprep also takes more time!) And be sure to enable all hearing loss prevention features in your Health app.

Although we cannot turn back the clock or undo previous exposure to loud noises, can Start taking action today to protect public hearings in 2020.

Liz Prosser is editor-in-chief of Women’s Health. Throughout her career, she has passionately reported and edited content related to health, fitness, nutrition, sexual health, and mental health. She has a 360-degree perspective on the world of wellness, working across a variety of platforms in print magazines (Self, Cosmopolitan), video (CosmoBody), and overseeing content and strategy for brands (Canyon Rach, SoulCycle). , and also the digital space (Well+Good).