Smoking linked with increased risk of hearing loss, says study
New Delhi, Mar 15 (ANI): Smokers are at a greater risk of hearing loss, according to a study. The research was conducted on over 50,000 participants over a span of eight years. Researchers analysed data from annual health checkups, which included audio testing performed by a technician and a health-related lifestyle questionnaire completed by each participant. They examined the effects of smoking status (current, former and never smokers), number of cigarettes smoked per day, and the duration of smoking cessation on the extent of hearing loss. Even after adjusting for factors including occupational noise exposure, researchers noted a 1.2 to 1.6 increased risk of hearing loss among current smokers compared with never smokers. While the association between smoking and high-frequency hearing loss was stronger than that of low-frequency hearing loss, the risk of both high and low-frequency hearing loss increased with cigarette consumption. The increased risk of hearing loss decreased within 5 years after quitting smoking.
