The latest AirPods from Apple will come with built-in hearing aids, the company announced Monday.

Designed as an over-the-counter hearing aid feature for those with mild to moderate hearing loss, users take hearing tests on iPhones or iPads running iOS 18, and then their AirPods make “personalized dynamic adjustments” to allow them to hear sounds that are boosted to prescribed levels in real time.

“This helps them better engage in conversation, and keeps them connected to the people and environment around them,” Apple noted in a news release announcing the new product.

The hearing settings are also automatically applied to any media someone is using. The hearing test takes about five minutes. Results, including audiograms, are stored privately within the Health app, the company noted.

“Hearing health is a cornerstone of overall well-being. Protecting and preserving our hearing enhances our quality of life both in the short-term and long-term,” Rick Neitzel, a professor of environmental health sciences at the University of Michigan and lead investigator of the Apple hearing study, said in the company news release. “These tools will help people protect their ears from noise pollution, be aware of changes in their hearing over time and have important conversations with their healthcare providers when they need additional support.”

Apple noted that, according to the World Health Organization, about 1.5 billion people around the world live with hearing loss. 

“For decades, Apple has led the way in designing products for everyone and supporting users with a broad spectrum of hearing abilities,” said Sarah Herrlinger, Apple’s senior director of global accessibility policy and initiatives. “These features on AirPods Pro will make an impact on so many people by driving more awareness around hearing health and empowering individuals with new customizable tools to help them stay connected.”

Along with the hearing aids, the company also announced new Apple Watch features that detect sleep apnea. Those features are expected to roll out this month after getting approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the company said.

“Every 30 days, Apple Watch will analyze breathing disturbance data and notify users if it shows consistent signs of moderate to severe sleep apnea so they can speak to their doctor about next steps, including potential diagnosis and treatment,” the company explained.

“Empowering consumers everywhere to have the ability to reliably identify the presence of abnormal breathing patterns during sleep can help uncover a woefully under-diagnosed and serious medical condition such as sleep apnea,” Dr. Sairam Parthasarathy, director of the University of Arizona’s Center for Sleep, Circadian and Neuroscience Research, said in the company news release. “This is a major step forward in improving public health.”

More information

Johns Hopkins has more on hearing loss.

SOURCES: Apple, news release, Sept. 9, 2024

Source: HealthDay