September is National Deaf Awareness Month

Deaf Awareness Month is celebrated in September to raise awareness of the challenges faced by deaf people, including their communication needs and Deaf culture, to highlight the positive aspects of deafness and to encourage social inclusion.

Statistics about hearing loss and deafness: 

• Deafness in children - 2–3 out of every 1,000 children in the United States are born with some level of hearing loss. More than 90% of deaf children are born to hearing parents. 

• Hearing loss in adults - 13% of Americans aged 12 and older have hearing loss in both ears. 

• Hearing loss by age - 2% of adults aged 45–54 have disabling hearing loss, while 8.5% of adults aged 55–64 have disabling hearing loss. Nearly 25% of those aged 65–74 and 50% of those who are 75 and older have disabling hearing loss. 

• Tinnitus - About 25 million Americans have experienced tinnitus lasting at least five minutes in the past year. 

• Hearing aid use - Around 28.8 million U.S. adults could benefit from using hearing aids, but only 17% of people worldwide who could benefit from hearing aids actually use them. 

• Deaf culture - Deaf culture includes its own language, social beliefs, history, values, and traditions. There are between 138 and 300 different sign languages used globally today.