Secondhand Smoke is Associated with Hearing Threshold Shifts in Obese Adults.
Hearing loss resulted from multiple intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Secondhand smoke (SHS) and obesity had been reported to be related to hearing loss. This study explored the possible associations of SHS and obesity with the hearing threshold. The relations between SHS and the hearing threshold in subjects from three different body mass index classes were analyzed. Our study included data from 1,961 subjects aged 20-69 years that were obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for the years 1999-2004. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, the subjects with the higher tertiles of serum cotinine levels tended to have higher hearing thresholds than those with the lowest tertile of serum cotinine levels (for both trends, p < 0.05). Notably, the obese subjects with the higher tertiles of serum cotinine levels had significantly higher hearing thresholds for high frequencies and low frequencies than those with the lowest tertile of serum cotinine levels (for both trends, p < 0.05). Our study showed a significant positive association between SHS exposure and hearing thresholds in the adult population, especially in obese individuals. Based on our findings, avoiding exposure to SHS, especially in obese adults, may decrease the risk of hearing loss.
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.|Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Yuan-Yung
YY
Lin
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Family Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital; School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Li-Wei
LW
Wu
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Family Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital; School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Tung-Wei
TW
Kao
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Family Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital; School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Chen-Jung
CJ
Wu
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Family Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital; School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Hui-Fang
HF
Yang
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Family Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital; School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Tao-Chun
TC
Peng
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Family Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital; School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Yu-Jen
YJ
Lin
Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.|Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Family Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital; School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.|Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital; School of Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Wei-Liang
WL
Chen
D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003367:Cotinine / Q000097:blood; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006309:Hearing / Q000502:physiology; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000097:blood / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects*
D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution; D003367:Cotinine