ASK THE EXPERT

ask the expert BY EMILY PETER-COREY

A: Hearing loss can be insidious, slow, and progressive; therefore, it oftentimes goes unnoticed. Here are some early signs to watch for.

• Difficulty hearing others in background noise. • Difficulty hearing children’s and women’s voices. • Asking others to repeat what they’re saying. • Turning up the television louder than others prefer. • Difficulty hearing on the telephone. • Putting the cell phone on speaker becomes easier to hear than listening with it on the ear. • Asking others to speak clearly. • Noticing that it’s difficult to hear others when they speak fast. • Sounds are muffled and dull.

It’s important to establish a baseline and monitor one’s hearing to keep your ears healthy.

—Roselynn Gamboa Young, Doctor of Audiology Roseville Diagnostic Hearing Center, 1411 Secret Ravine Parkway, Suite 120, Roseville, 916-7804200, rosevillediagnostichearingcenter.com