The loop is created when a wire is installed around the perimeter of the room and plugged into an audio source. Much as a Wi-Fi network delivers wireless Internet access to computer users in coffee shops, a loop system takes sound from an electronic source, such as a microphone or TV, and delivers it directly to a hearing aid. The result: clear sounds without the annoying background clatter and static that can be so frustrating.
"Hearing loops increase access for the hard of hearing in public venues like churches, concert halls, theaters and even airports, where poor acoustics sometimes prevent understanding even for people with normal hearing," says Juliëtte Sterkens, a hearing-loop advocate at the Hearing Loss Association of America.
Hearing loops can also be installed in your home and connected to your television or music system. (For more information, visit HearingLoop.org.)
To learn more about the push for more loops in public areas, check out the "Get in the Hearing Loop" campaign cosponsored by the Hearing Loss Association of America and the American Academy of Audiology.
Cathie Gandel is a freelance writer based in Bridgehampton, N.Y. Additional reporting by Candy Sagon.
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