A Dose of Good News!

We are learning more and more about connections between a healthy life style and cardiovascular and hearing health. But this specific correlation made me smile, and I hope you will too!

A research team in Korea conducted an extensive well-controlled nation-wide study of the health of a large group of middle aged subjects. Many things were measured. One result is startling: Hearing loss was significantly lower for people who regularly ate chocolate!

In fact, the researchers found that the severity of sensorineural hearing loss was inversely correlated to the frequency of chocolate consumption. In other words, the more often you eat chocolate, the better the odds of avoiding severe hearing loss!

This connection is a correlation – the research does not indicate the causal mechanism. But this was a large study and the team notes that “Our results suggest that chocolate plays an otoprotective role against hearing loss.”

Cocoa is known to be an anti-inflammatory that may prevent cardiovascular inflammation. Perhaps the same machanism reduces vascular hypertension in the ear. The report goes on “Thus, our results suggest that chocolate decreases the rate of hypertension and dyslipidemia, which enables the preservation of hearing.”

Tinnitus correlations were also examined but there was no change in the rate for tinnitus noted in this study.
By the way, these results were based on analysis of people’s typical consumption, so it was not necessary to eat a truckload of chocolate. In my next post I will share some other “power foods” that may have some otoprotective qualities. They include bananas and black beans (both high in potassium), so at least for me, the smile-maker is cocoa! Enjoy some delicious dark chocolate – no guarantees, but it can’t hurt!

We may not be serving chocolate at McGuires, but we are here to provide the best possible and personalized hearing care, and deliver news of ongoing research as it develops.