Blog

Featured Posts

The Ontario Infant Hearing Program: A Parent’s Guide to Newborn Hearing Screening

Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash Few things matter more to new parents than knowing their baby is healthy. Among the screening tests offered shortly after birth, the newborn hearing screening is one of the most important yet often overlooked. Hearing plays a critical role in a child’s early development, supporting speech and language acquisition, communication, learning, and social interaction. Identifying any hearing differences as early as possible gives families and healthcare professionals the best opportunity to provide timely support. Ontario has had a universal newborn hearing screening program in place since the early 2000s, delivered through the Infant Hearing Program

What Your Audiologist Needs to Know About Your Health and Daily Life

A hearing test is an important part of understanding your hearing, but it doesn’t tell your audiologist everything. Your health, daily routine, listening environments, and personal goals can all influence the type of hearing care that may work best for you. Knowing what to tell your audiologist helps them see the full picture. A recent health change, a new challenge at work, or difficulty following conversations in restaurants may seem unrelated to your appointment, but these details can provide useful context. The more specific you can be, the easier it is to build a hearing care plan around your real life.

A man holding his ear, showing signs of Tinnitus pain

Understanding Tinnitus And Why It Happens

Tinnitus is often described as ringing in the ears, but it can sound different from person to person. Some people hear buzzing, humming, hissing, clicking, or even a whooshing sound, even when there is no outside noise causing it. For some, it comes and goes. For others, it can become a constant background sound. Tinnitus is also more common than many people realize. More than 40% of Canadians will experience tinnitus at some point in their lives, and for some, it can become bothersome enough to affect sleep, concentration, mood, and daily comfort. Understanding tinnitus means looking at what it is,

Elderly woman with short white hair, wearing a light blue jacket, leans forward with a hand to her ear, struggling with hearing loss.

How Do You Know If You Have Hearing Loss

Have you started asking people to repeat themselves more often? Maybe conversations in busy restaurants feel harder to follow, or you’ve noticed the television volume creeping higher than everyone else prefers. Hearing loss often develops gradually, which can make the early signs easy to dismiss. What feels like occasional mishearing or background noise frustration may actually be the beginning of a change in your hearing. Because hearing loss can happen slowly, many people do not realize how much they have been missing until someone else points it out. Recognizing the signs early can help you take action sooner, making it easier

The Hidden Impact of Headphones: Are You Listening Safely in 2026?

Headphones have become part of daily life. They’re on during commutes, at the gym, through the workday, and well into the evening. For many people, including teenagers and young adults, they’re in use for several hours a day. Yet very few people think about what prolonged listening at high volumes is doing to their hearing over time. This post explains how headphone use can affect your hearing, what the warning signs look like, and what safe listening means in practice. Can Headphones Cause Permanent Hearing Loss? Yes. Repeated exposure to loud sound through headphones can permanently damage the hair cells of

Other

PRESBYCUSIS

The term “presbycusis” refers to the slow and progressive loss of hearing that affects both ears to the same degree, usually starting around the age of 50. This age-related loss of hearing most often starts in the high-frequency range, where conversation is conducted. As a result, those suffering from presbycusis are likely to find that their ability to understand speech is hindered more than their ability to hear sounds. This is particularly true in cases where presbycusis sufferers are trying to hear a conversation in noisy environments. The term “cocktail party effect” refers to the ability to focus on a single

NOTABLE HEARING-IMPAIRED MUSICIANS

Eric Clapton recently expressed concerns that he had tinnitus and was “going deaf.” The same rang true for Ludwig van Beethoven who moved from hearing buzzing in his ears (tinnitus) at the age of 26 to progressive hearing loss and, finally, total deafness by age 44. Even so, he continued to compose music. He was able to do so by holding a pencil in his mouth and touching the other end to the soundboard of the piano as he played. Using the same principle that makes a bone-conduction hearing instrument work, Beethoven was able to conduct sound vibrations through the pencil,

REGROWING HAIR (CELLS)

The type of hearing loss known as “sensorineural” is a result of inner ear or auditory nerve dysfunction. This is due in part to damage of the tiny “hair cells” that reside within the cochlea. These sensory receptors convert sound waves into electrical signals that are transmitted through the acoustic nerve to the brain. However, once hair cells become damaged by loud noises, they are unable to regenerate themselves. As a result, hearing loss that is associated with hair cell death is permanent. While hearing aids can effectively assist in the treatment of sensorineural hearing loss, researchers continue to search for

COOL, CALM, AND CONNECTED

As increasing numbers of people have come to view hearing aids as a technology extension of the smartphone, their coolness factor towards hearing aids has also risen. No longer are they regarded simply as a means of improving hearing health. Hearing instruments with Bluetooth connectivity have attained a new status as communication and information-gathering devices. Although they were once only compatible with Apple’s iOS mobile operating systems, newer Bluetooth hearing instruments offer universal connectivity. This makes them usable with an Android device or even a classic flip phone that is Bluetooth-ready. The latest Bluetooth hearing instruments can answer a phone call

Blog

Featured Posts

Other

Book Your Hearing Health Check Appointment