Last Updated on August 9, 2025 by Jonathan Javid Au.D.
As an audiologist, I get this question multiple times a month: “Will wearing my hearing aids cause more hearing loss?”
It’s a logical concern — after all, hearing aids make sounds louder, and loud sounds can damage hearing. So, let’s take a closer look at what the research and clinical experience actually say.
Quick Answer
No — professionally fit hearing aids do not cause additional hearing loss. They amplify soft and moderate sounds to make them audible but limit the amplification of loud sounds to safe levels. This means everyday noises will not be intense enough to damage your hearing.
However, it’s important to know that while hearing aids won’t damage your hearing, they also don’t protect your ears from dangerous noise exposure. For example, if you wear hearing aids while firing a gun, the device won’t make the gunshot louder — but it also won’t block the harmful sound energy from reaching your eardrum.
How Audiologists Prevent Hearing Aids from Being Too Loud
When you are fit with hearing aids by an audiologist, the programming is based on your hearing test results and verified using real ear measurements (REM).
One of these verification steps is called Maximum Power Output (MPO). During MPO testing, a thin probe microphone is placed in your ear canal, just a few millimeters from your eardrum. The hearing aid is then inserted, and very loud test tones are played. The audiologist measures exactly how much sound reaches your eardrum to ensure it stays below discomfort and damage thresholds.
This precise fitting process is one of the key reasons professionally fit hearing aids are safe.
What About Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids?
Over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids are regulated by the FDA and are designed for adults with mild to moderate hearing loss. Manufacturers must limit their maximum output to ensure they cannot damage hearing, even at the highest volume setting.
However, Personal Sound Amplification Products (PSAPs) are not medical devices and may not follow the same safety standards. While some are well-designed, others could potentially reach unsafe loudness levels.
Why Hearing Aids Are Not Hearing Protection
Hearing aids are designed to make speech and environmental sounds audible — not to block harmful noise. Loud sounds can pass through the venting in the hearing aid or leak around it, still reaching your eardrum at damaging levels.
That means you should still use proper hearing protection when using firearms, power tools, lawn mowers, or other loud equipment.
Rule of thumb: If the environment requires hearing protection, remove your hearing aids and wear properly fitted earplugs or earmuffs.
How Hearing Aids Protect Speech Understanding Ability
One of the biggest benefits of wearing hearing aids is protecting your brain’s ability to process speech — something that can decline over time if hearing loss is left untreated. This decline, known as auditory deprivation, occurs when the brain receives too little stimulation from the ears.
Without amplification, your brain cells responsible for decoding speech grow weaker, especially in noisy environments like restaurants. While untreated hearing loss doesn’t necessarily make your ears worse, it can make your brain worse at understanding what you hear.
Wearing properly fit, functioning hearing aids helps maintain your word recognition abilities for the long term.
FAQs
Do hearing aids prevent future hearing loss?
No. While hearing aids help you hear better and keep your brain’s speech processing sharp, they do not protect your ears from further damage caused by noise, aging, or other factors.
Will my hearing get worse even if I wear hearing aids?
Most age-related hearing loss is progressive, meaning it may worsen over time regardless of hearing aid use. However, hearing aids can help you maintain communication skills and quality of life.
Can I wear hearing aids with earmuffs?
Wearing hearing aids under earmuffs can cause feedback (whistling) and reduce the earmuffs’ seal. For loud environments, it’s better to remove your hearing aids and use hearing protection designed for noise reduction.
Key Takeaways
- Professionally fit hearing aids are safe and won’t cause more hearing loss.
- Hearing aids do not protect against loud noise — use earplugs or earmuffs when needed.
- Wearing hearing aids helps preserve your brain’s speech understanding ability.
- Over-the-counter devices are regulated for safety; PSAPs are not.
Written by Dr. Jonathan Javid, Clinical Audiologist with over 12 years of experience helping patients improve their hearing health.