Weight Matters: The Link Between BMI and Hearing

Doctors have long warned that excess body weight negatively impacts your health in many ways. Obesity has been linked to heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and diabetes. If you step on the scale and the numbers frighten you, you’re right to be alarmed: in addition to these well-known health hazards, new research shows that overweight individuals have an increased risk of developing hearing loss, as well.

In order to hear optimally, the tiny hair cells in your inner ear responsible for detecting sound and translating it into electrical signals that are sent to the brain for interpretation require a steady flow of blood and oxygen. Obesity forces the heart to work harder to pump blood throughout your body, putting a strain on the walls of the capillaries and making it difficult for them to deliver oxygen effectively. Without these precious resources, permanent damage to the hair cells may occur, leading to hearing loss.

In addition, excess weight contributes to many of the diseases mentioned above, all of which can cause hearing loss. Heart disease limits circulation, leading to poor blood and oxygen flow; high blood pressure damages artery walls, causing plaque buildup and diminished blood flow; and diabetes can cause damage to the blood vessels supplying the inner ear. In fact, hearing loss is twice as common in persons with diabetes versus those without the disease. While obesity itself might not directly cause hearing loss, it’s responsible for a number of serious health conditions that do.

Once hearing loss occurs, it’s irreversible. Some conditions can’t be prevented but losing extra pounds and maintaining a healthy weight can go a long way toward reducing your risk. By adopting a healthy lifestyle incorporating a proper diet and regular exercise, you can literally add years to your life. One recent study showed a 17 percent reduction in hearing loss in women who were physically active, concluding that a higher body mass index (BMI) and larger waist circumference are associated with a higher risk of hearing loss, while greater physical activity is associated with a lower risk.¹

If you are struggling with your weight and want to get healthy, talk to your doctor. They can help provide strategies for living a healthier lifestyle and, in the process, help lessen your risk of developing hearing loss.

¹ Curhan, S., Eavey, R., Wang, M., Stampfer, M., & Curhan, G. (2013). Body Mass Index, Waist Circumference, Physical Activity, and Risk of Hearing Loss in Women. The American Journal Of Medicine, 126(12), 1142.e1-1142.e8. doi:10.1016/j.amjmed.2013.04.026