Smoking Linked to an Increased Risk of Hearing Loss

A study conducted by Japan's National Center for Global Health and Medicine and published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research found an association between tobacco and higher risk of hearing loss, reports Inquirer.net . The researchers examined 50,195 participants aged 20 to 64 years over eight years. The outcomes showed that, even after accounting for factors such as noise exposure at work, current smokers had a 1.2 increased risk of developing low-frequency hearing loss, and a 1.6 increased risk of high-frequency hearing loss, in comparison with non-smokers. In addition, the risk of developing both high- and low-frequency hearing loss rose with the number of cigarettes smoked each day. Former smokers had a 1.2 higher risk of high-frequency hearing loss, although the risk of hearing loss appeared to decline within five years after quitting smoking. "With a large sample size, long follow-up period, and objective assessment of hearing loss, our study provides strong evidence that smoking is an independent risk factor of hearing loss," says the Center's Dr. Huanhuan Hu. "These results provide strong evidence to support that smoking is a causal factor for hearing loss and emphasize the need for tobacco control to prevent or delay the development of hearing loss."