Time to Read: 5 minutes
Did you know that what you eat might have an impact on your hearing?
Researchers have been doing extensive studies on whether antioxidants can help reduce the risk of hearing loss and found high doses of Vitamins A, C and E along with magnesium was effective in preventing noise-inducing hearing loss in guinea pigs.
The research, conducted by Dr Colleen Le Prell in 2005 suggested the vitamins and minerals worked in synergy to prevent cell damage that causes hearing loss.
According to the report: “pre-treatment presumably reduced reactive elements called free radicals that form during and after noise exposure and noise-induced constriction of blood flow to the inner ear, and may have also reduced neural excitotoxicity, or the damage to auditory neurons that can occur due to over-stimulation. The post-noise nutrient doses apparently “scavenged” free radicals that continue to form long-after after this noise exposure ends.”
That’s fine for guinea pigs, but what about people?
In 2013, a study was conducted on people and discovered the same thing - higher intakes of these antioxidant vitamins along with magnesium did better on the pure tone averages at both speech and higher frequencies.
This all sounds very promising, although a word of caution should be sounded, research results have been inconsistent.
A review of ten studies on this topic revealed that one antioxidant in particular showed the best effect for patients with sensorineural hearing loss caused by exposure to high sound pressure levels.
Ginseng appeared to be the best in preventing auditory threshold worsening at the frequency of 4 kHz, but not at 6 kHz.
Another research review found that antioxidants combined with corticosteroids achieved better results than the corticosteroids and a placebo.
What are Antioxidants?
Antioxidants are types of vitamins and minerals that are believed to combat 'free radicals'.
Free radicals are unstable molecules that occur during the process of oxidation in the body.
Some free radicals are fine, but too many can cause conditions including vision loss, arthritis, certain cancers and even Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease.
Antioxidants 'scavenge' free radicals from cells to reduce the damage they cause.
The great news is getting antioxidants is cheap, easy and tasty! Add an extra portion of these foods into your meals every day. Here is the top 12 antioxidant-rich foods you can enjoy:
Dark Chocolate- Pecans
- Blueberries
- Strawberries
- Artichokes
- Goji Berries
- Raspberries
- Kale
- Red Cabbage
- Beans
- Beets
- Spinach
Additional Reading: Foods That Can Help Your Hearing
