Fat percentage, especially in the legs and arms, is a significant risk factor for a sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL), according to a study. The study also found that fat-free mass, especially in the legs and arms, had significant protective effects against sensorineural hearing loss. Even though there is a relationship, the researchers state that the associations may not be causal.
Finally, the study found that young women with sensorineural hearing loss were more susceptible to body composition indicators.
The study revealed that fat percentage, especially legs and arms, were significant risk factors for sensorineural hearing loss, with around a 1.45 increased risk of a SNHL. On the other hand, fat-free mass, especially in the arms and legs showed significant protective effects against sensorineural hearing loss.
The study included 147,296 adult participants with complete data on body composition and a speech-reception-threshold (SRT) test. The study further conducted a prospective study with 129,905 participants without sensorineural hearing loss at baseline and followed up to 15 years to explore the association between body composition and new-onset sensorineural hearing loss.
The study, "Associations Between Body Composition and Sensorineural Hearing Loss Among Adults Based on the UK Biobank", was published in the journal Otolaryngology Head Neck Surgery.
Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Originally published on hear-it.org
