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Most hearing aids today come with Bluetooth. If you’re thinking about getting Bluetooth-enabled hearing aids, you might wonder if wireless technology can harm your health. Luckily, research shows they’re safe to use.
Both the FDA and FCC make sure wireless devices, including hearing aids, don’t give off harmful levels of radiation.
Let’s look at the facts about Bluetooth in hearing aids and help you make a smart choice about your hearing health.
Bluetooth is a radio frequency that lets your hearing aids connect to other devices like your phone, tablet, or computer. With this connection, you can stream phone calls, TV audio, and music straight to your ears through your hearing aids.
This direct connection to an audio source helps to lessen interference caused by ambient noise that can be a problem with some traditional hearing aids.
Bluetooth hearing aids give off a very weak type of radiation called radio frequency (RF) energy. This type of non-ionizing radiation is too weak to damage your cells or DNA. It does not have the same harmful effects as the strong radiation called ionizing radiation found in X-rays or gamma rays, which can break down cells and cause cancer. That’s why you need a lead vest for medical X-rays but not for Bluetooth devices.
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Other everyday devices that use low-level radiation include cell phones, Wi-Fi, pacemakers, and microwaves.
Scientists measure radiation strength using something called the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR). This tells us how much RF energy your body tissue absorbs.
Bluetooth hearing aids have very low SAR values and well below the FDA’s safety limit of 1.6 W/kg. Whereas cell phones may reach the FDA’s radiation limit, Bluetooth hearing aids have SAR levels of 0.001-0.02 W/kg.
“There are well established standards and regulations for exposure to radiation of all types, including non-ionizing,” says Jason Galster, vice president of clinical research strategy at Sonova. “And we know that hearing aids are orders of magnitude below what these dictate.”
New innovations in Bluetooth technology now allow us to stream public audio — like a TV in a gym or a public announcement system — through your hearing aids using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) Audio's Auracast broadcast technology. Auracast allows a single audio source to transmit to an unlimited number of nearby receivers, such as hearing aids and headphones.
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Auracast is in the early phases of adoption but holds big promise for people who are hard of hearing. Hearing Tracker’s Abram Bailey, AuD, recently shared his experience with Auracast’s next-gen Bluetooth technology live at the Sydney Opera House in Australia.
Many new hearing aids use BLE. The technology helps balance high-quality sound with low power consumption to extend the battery life of your hearing aids. BLE hearing aids work in short bursts and spend most of their time in a low-power “sleep” mode. This means even less radiation exposure. Today, most major hearing aid brands offer BLE audio capability for Auracast. Hearing Tracker ranked the ReSound Nexia the best hearing aid for Auracast.
While hearing aids remain in your ears all day, they don’t constantly transmit wireless signals. Instead, they engage in periodic wireless activity, activating only when needed. Even when two hearing aids sync with each other to maintain coordination, they “trickle” small amounts of data back and forth rather than maintaining an open channel at full power, according to Galster.
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The highest power consumption occurs when you’re streaming audio, whether through Bluetooth or through proprietary technologies such as those made for iPhone or Android devices. During audio streaming, hearing aids work harder to transmit the large amounts of data required for sound. However, even at peak usage, the radiation exposure remains insignificant.
“A wireless hearing aid emits 30 times less power than a typical cell phone,” Galster says. This means that even when your hearing aids are working their hardest to stream music or a phone call, the exposure is still what Galster describes as “a tiny little blip” compared to everyday devices like smartphones and WiFi routers.
While some debate exists around the electromagnetic radiation from cell phones, there is very little evidence linking it to health problems. The FDA states that “the weight of scientific evidence has not linked exposure to radio frequency energy from cell phone use with any health problems at or below the radio frequency exposure limits set by the FCC.”
Since hearing aids give off much less radiation than cell phones—up to 30 times less, according to experts—they operate well below safety limits. In fact, their radiation levels are so low that they don’t even require SAR testing.
Galster acknowledges that wearing devices on your head all day naturally raises questions of safety. However, he emphasizes that hearing aids emit power far below the wireless devices people use routinely. “If we see proximity to a cell phone or to a WiFi router as safe and part of routine life, hearing aids live in this space of wireless power emission that is so far below them,” Galster explains.
RF energy creates heat when absorbed by an object. This is how microwaves work. When your body absorbs RF energy, molecules vibrate and heat up. With high exposure, this could cause raised body temperature or tissue damage. However, the RF levels from hearing aids are far too low to cause any heating effect.
Donovan Wallace, vice president of electronics at Design 1st, notes that while some studies have suggested other biological effects from RF radiation beyond heating, “there is no consensus across the scientific community as to the validity of the supporting studies.”
Wallace, who is an audio expert in consumer electronics engineering, points out that with approximately 6 billion mobile phone users worldwide, if there were definitive health consequences, the evidence would be clear by now.
Both experts agree that hearing aids, which are devices worn closest to your body for the longest periods, are actually among the safest wireless technology available.
Most modern hearing aids are Bluetooth-enabled so you can stream audio directly from other Bluetooth devices. In most cases, this eliminates the need for using both.
But if you’re looking for something different, like noise-cancelling features or immersive gaming, you might decide to use both Bluetooth-enabled headphones and hearing aids.
If you do use both devices, there is still very little health risk. Recent studies show that Bluetooth headsets give off less radiation than cell phones or home Wi-Fi networks. People use these devices everyday without health problems.
Bluetooth hearing aids are safe. They use very low levels of non-ionizing radiation—far less than cell phones or Wi-Fi networks. Both the FDA and FCC carefully monitor these devices to protect your health. Public health data offers no association between exposure to RF energy from Bluetooth hearing aids and health problems. There is no credible scientific evidence suggesting they pose health risks.
Seka Palikuca is a health writer and editor who covers auditory health for Hearing Tracker. She served as an editor at the Chicago Tribune and her byline has appeared in Crain’s Chicago Business, Crain’s New York Business, and Modern Healthcare. She has developed content for physicians, medical students, healthcare leaders, and consumers.
Dr. Bailey is a leading expert on consumer technology in the audiology industry. He is a staunch advocate for patient-centered hearing care and audiological best practices, and welcomes any technological innovation that improves access to quality hearing outcomes. Dr. Bailey holds an Au.D. from Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
