THE fizz of a can of pop being opened, the scratch of a record being played, and a cat’s meow are among the sounds people with hearing loss across the London region most miss, according to a survey by Specsavers.

The research offers insight into people who struggle with hearing loss, and how not being able to hear clearly impacts their day-to-day life, with conversations in a busy café, the sound they are first likely to have difficulty with.

When asked, around 47% admitted to being in denial about their hearing loss for a long time, while more than 50% would ‘give anything’ to have their hearing back in full.

Championing Specsavers’ Lost and Found campaign, which highlights how hearing aids can help people to retrieve the sounds they’re missing out on, is musician Jools Holland who, despite not struggling with hearing loss himself, is keen to encourage other people to protect their hearing.

‘It would be terrifying to lose my hearing, it’d be the end of my world,’ he says. ‘I am so grateful that, despite being a musician nearly all of my life, when I had my hearing tested by Specsavers, no damage had been done.

‘I know musicians who do suffer from tinnitus and hearing loss but am happy to say that I have escaped the harm that loud sounds can inflict on your long-term hearing. Hearing is such a precious sense that you really don’t want to lose it, and you can get it checked out for free, so what’s not to like about that.’

Jools is working with Specsavers Audiology, who have created a unique composition, based on Vivaldi’s Four Seasons Autumn Part 3: Allegra, using the most commonly reported ‘lost’ sounds, as reported by those suffering with hearing loss. These include social conversations, rainfall, birdsong, the ringing of a phone and the ticking of a clock. It is part of a major campaign to highlight how everyone’s hearing is unique and these lost sounds can be found again through hearing tests and hearing aids.

Says Jools: ‘This has made me realise even more, how important it is to look after your hearing and has brought it home to me the sounds that I would most miss if I lost my hearing – those ambient sounds that are part of our everyday existence that we perhaps take for granted and that give context to our world. People should get their hearing checked, even if they don’t think that they have hearing loss, as you may not be aware of the sounds you’re missing, as they can slowly slip away without you noticing.’

Gordon Harrison, Specsavers chief audiologist, says: ‘Many people who struggle with hearing loss admit to being in denial for a long time before seeking help, as our research shows. But fear of losing our hearing shouldn’t stop us seeking help. The reality is that many of the sounds we lose can be retrieved with the right help from a trained audiologist. Moreover, these sounds don’t need to be lost in the first instance, if you’re regularly surrounded by loud noise, make sure to take hearing protection with you.

‘Specsavers offers free hearing tests throughout the UK, and we want to encourage anyone concerned about their hearing to come forward. You might be surprised at how quickly you’ll be hearing the everyday sounds you thought you’d never find again.’