Although the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) was conducted several years ago, interviews with participants have just been completed, allowing researchers to better understand secondhand smoke and its impact on young adults.
The study evaluated 1,533 teens. Those who had exposure to secondhand smoke exhibited notably higher rates of low and high frequency hearing loss, as compared with those who had no exposure to secondhand smoke. In fact, nearly 82% of the afflicted teens did not recognize their hearing difficulties.
The study participants also underwent a battery of physical tests, including blood testing for cotinine, a by-product of nicotine exposure. Researchers noted that the rate of hearing loss appeared to be cumulative, and appeared to increase with the level of serum cotinine found in the blood of study participants.
"Secondhand smoke has been a suspect in hearing loss among young adults for quite some time," noted Dr. Mary Bohr, Director of Audiology at McGuire's Hearing Aids and Audiological Services. "The study confirms the detrimental effects of secondhand smoke among this population, and reinforces the belief that smoking is dangerous for people other than the smoker," she added.
"Adolescents exposed to (secondhand smoke) may need to be closely monitored for early hearing loss with periodic audiologic testing," study researchers cautioned.
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