I now hear every word in my business meetings

HERE was a time when hearing aids were so bulky they came with a satchel to carry the battery pack which powered them, but the latest high- tech digital hearing aids are so discreet the only thing friends and colleagues are likely to notice is a dramatic improvement in your hearing.

Tazmeet Anand, a senior audiologist and Amplifon district manager says: “We havemoved forward significantly. People are not only more accepting of hearing loss, but hearing aids are much more cosmetically appealing than they used to be. Now you can get virtually invisible hearing aids that sit inside the ear.”

Concerns about the visibility of hearing aids are a common barrier to seeking help.

Initially, Cheshire businessman Deryck Highet had these worries but he now wears virtually invisible hearing aids and says: “A lot of people I work with don’t know I wear hearing aids.”

The reality is that hearing loss begins in the forties and fifties and it’s estimated there are 3.7 million people in the UK of working age affected by hearing loss. However a quiet revolution in hearing- aid technology means many of these life- changing devices are virtually invisible.

Deryck says his life was transformed when he was fitted with Amplifon hearing aids just over a year ago. “Wearing the hearing aids has transformed my life. From a business point of view I feel more confident going out on appointments. From a family point of view I am able to watch the TV without it being at a silly volume. And there’s the added bonus of being able to wear them when I’m out running or walking the dog and being able to listen to music.”