The role of socio-economic and lifestyle factors in hearing function in middle-aged adults

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the associations between socioeconomic and lifestyle factors and measures of hearing ability to better understand potential risk factors for hearing loss. Insights from this research could help audiologists identify high-risk demographics and ultimately contribute to addressing inequalities in hearing health. Design: An online study design was used, where data were collected on participant demographics, lifestyle and socioeconomic status, including age, gender, ethnicity, region of residence, income, education, occupation, exercise frequency, height and weight, smoking status, and weekly alcohol consumption, which were used as model predictors. Participants also self-reported their hearing function using the Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing Scale 12 (SSQ-12) and completed an online digits-in-noise (DiN) task to assess speech perception ability, which were used as outcome variables. A sample of 227 adults aged 45–65 (mean age = 53.77, SD = 5.87) were recruited through Prolific (www.prolific.com) based on Office for National Statistics (ONS) income groups. Results: Two multiple regression models were conducted with the outcome variables of speech perception ability (Digits-in-Noise: DiN) and self-reported hearing function (Speech and Spatial Qualities of Hearing Scale: SSQ-12). The analysis revealed that having a routine and manual occupation predicted worse self-reported hearing function, as did being a regular tobacco consumer. However, no predictors were significantly associated with speech perception ability. Conclusions: The findings suggest that socioeconomic and lifestyle factors, as measured in this study, are significantly associated with self-reported hearing function in mid-life, but not with speech in noise perception ability. These results partially align with previous research showing that socioeconomic and lifestyle factors, including smoking and occupation, are associated with hearing sensitivity, when measured using pure tone audiometry. These data highlight the need for greater understanding as to how lifestyle and socioeconomic factors relate to different dimensions of hearing health.