Search resultsProspective study of alcohol use and hearing loss in men
Title
Prospective study of alcohol use and hearing loss in men
Publication type
Journal Article
Year of Publication
2011
Authors
Journal
Ear and Hearing
Volume
32
Issue
1
Pagination
46 - 52
Date published
2011
ISBN
01960202 (ISSN)
Keywords
Adult, Aged, Alcohol Drinking, alcoholic beverage, Alcoholic Beverages, article, chemically induced disorder, cyanocobalamin deficiency, drinking behavior, follow up, Follow-Up Studies, health survey, Hearing Loss, Sensorineural, human, Humans, male, Middle Aged, Multivariate Analysis, perception deafness, Population Surveillance, proportional hazards model, Proportional Hazards Models, Prospective Studies, prospective study, risk factor, Risk Factors, Vitamin B 12 Deficiency
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Hearing loss is a common and disabling sensory disorder, yet prospective data on potentially modifiable risk factors are limited. Previous studies suggest that alcohol consumption may influence the development of hearing loss, yet results have been inconsistent. The purpose of this study was to prospectively examine the relation between alcohol use and hearing loss in men. DESIGN: We examined prospectively the independent association between alcohol intake and self-reported professionally diagnosed hearing loss in 26,809 men aged 40 to 74 yrs at baseline in 1986. Study participants completed detailed questionnaires at baseline and every 2 yrs thereafter. Incident cases of hearing loss were defined as those professionally diagnosed after 1986. Cox proportional hazards multivariate regression was used to adjust for potential confounding factors. RESULTS: During 386,081 person-years of follow-up, 3447 incident cases of hearing loss were reported. Overall, there was no association between level of alcohol intake and risk of hearing loss. Compared with those who did not consume alcohol, the multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios (95% confidence interval) were 1.00 (0.89 to 1.12) for those who consumed 5.0 to 9.9 g/day, 1.08 (0.96 to 1.21) for 10.0 to 14.9 g/day, and 0.98 (0.85 to 1.13) for 30.0 to 49.9 g/day. The results did not differ by age group or folate intake. Among those with lower intake of vitamin B12, however, higher consumption of alcohol, specifically liquor, was associated with an increased risk of hearing loss. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that low or moderate alcohol consumption does not influence the risk of hearing loss in older men. A possible relation between vitamin B12 intake, alcohol consumption, and hearing loss merits further investigation. Copyright