Over the past few months, private hearing aids have entered the mainstream technology conversation, due in no small part to the development of mass-market products with approved hearing testing and hearing aid functionality built in.
By far the biggest name in this field has been Apple, who even featured the functionality as a focal point of their recent marketing drives. However, whilst there was a huge push for the technology in the United States, it had not received regulatory approval in the United Kingdom.
This changed dramatically in mid-January 2025, when the UK government published revised guidance regarding the sale of devices with hearing aid functionality, approving the sale of AirPods and other smart earphones with hearing aid functionality.
The approval has emerged through what appears to be a loophole in the regulations involving audiology; audiology is a medical profession and hearing aids are prescription medical devices, so they should not legally be allowed to be sold over the counter by non-experts.
The way around this in the United States was to establish a separate class of over-the-counter hearing aids, but in the UK the approval was based on the idea that as long as the test was self-administered after the purchase of the earphones, they could be used as hearing aids.
It is somewhat dubious logic, but the result is that for mild to moderate hearing loss, there is a stopgap solution whilst waiting for an audiology test and a proper, discreet, fitted hearing aid.
These sorts of makeshift hearing aids are limited in scope compared to one designed, fitted and prescribed by a professional audiologist, but they can provide an important testing ground for someone to see if hearing aids will benefit them at all.
One major conundrum at the heart of audiology is that hearing loss can be slowed down the sooner it begins to be treated. If a hearing aid fitted to treat mild hearing loss is used regularly early, it will take longer for the hearing loss to progress.
This in turn not only has an effect on hearing but also on language processing, social lives and mental health, as there is a correlation between hearing loss and an increased risk of dementia.
Anything that gets hearing aids to people who need them sooner is something that should be welcomed by audiology, particularly as earphones with hearing aid functionality are an effective first step in normalising their use.
At the same time, they should be treated more akin to reading glasses than properly prescribed and fitted hearing aids. They are not designed to treat every case of hearing loss, nor will they be effective for everyone, in the same way that people with glaucoma are unlikely to be helped by reading glasses.
The built-in hearing tests must also include advice to contact an audiologist in cases of moderate-to-severe hearing loss to ensure that people are being supported as much as possible and are encouraged to seek a diagnosis and treatment for any hearing-related conditions.
