Eating five-a-day is sound advice

Post on 2nd July 2015

We all know that eating a balanced, healthy diet is good for us but a new study has discovered it our hearing can benefit from it too.

The research team at the University of Florida suggest that people who eat a healthy diet are less likely to suffer from hearing loss.

Dr Christopher Spankovich, health researcher at the university, said: “Our hearing is linked to our general health.

“Our auditory system is dependent on our cardiovascular, neural and metabolic health, and if we are not healthy in general, it makes sense that we could increase our susceptibility to hearing loss.”

In past studies, Dr Spankovich found that the higher a person scored on the Healthy Eating Index, the better his or her auditory function was.

In addition to answering questionnaires, 2,366 people were given a four-part hearing test.

When researchers analysed the data, Dr Spankovich discovered a strong link between diet, hearing and noise exposure.

The hearing of people who ate well but had higher noise exposure was found to be comparable to the hearing of people with lower noise exposure who ate poorer diets.

The research team concluded that while eating a healthy diet may not reverse hearing damage, it plays a part in prevention.

Scrivens hearing specialist, Stuart Spencer, added: “Having a balanced, nutritional diet is good for our overall wellbeing but this research proves that it goes much further and boosts our senses, such as hearing.”

Here are five food groups that could help your hearing:

Omega 3 Fats & Vitamin D: Generally found in fish, such as salmon, tuna, trout or sardines. Omega 3 fats strengthen the blood vessels in our ear’s sensory system.

Anti-oxidants & Folic Acid: A regular intake of antioxidants, especially in the form of folic acid commonly found in spinach, asparagus, beans, broccoli, eggs, liver or nuts, can reduce the risk of hearing loss. Antioxidants reduce the number of free radicals that swirl through your body and which can otherwise damage the nerve tissue in your inner ears.

Magnesium: Commonly found in bananas, potatoes, artichokes or broccoli, has been shown to provide additional protection against hearing loss.

Zinc: Now here’s a good excuse to eat chocolate.  Zinc can increase your inner ear’s resistance to age related hearing loss. This can be found in dark chocolate or oysters, among many.

Vitamin C, E & Glutathione: Found in an array of fruit and vegetables such as oranges and peppers, Vitamin C/E can keep free radicals in check and strengthen your overall immune system, thus reducing the risk of ear infections.