Study Finds a Possible Link Between Staying Active and Better Hearing in Older Adults

Researchers from the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders (COMD) have partnered with faculty from across the Arnold School and USC to complete a study investigating the connections between physical function, blood pressure, hearing, and cognition among older adults. Published in Scientific Reports, the team found that participants who maintained higher levels of physical function (i.e., engaging in everyday physical activities) were less likely to experience hearing loss.

“Aging has long been associated with decreases in physical, sensory, and cognitive functions, and scientists and clinicians previously assumed that cardiovascular health was the common underlying factor in these declines,” says Jean Neils-Strunjas, chair for the COMD department and lead author on the study. “However, our research showed that systolic blood pressure – a measure of cardiovascular health that increases with age – did not appear to impact hearing loss while physical function seemed to have a protective effect in the group we studied, which was comprised mostly of educated women.”

Leveraging data form the Aging Brain Cohort, a project of the Aphasia Lab led by COMD professor and USC Vice President for Research Julius Fridriksson, the team analyzed information collected from 150 community-based adults ages 50-80. These individuals had already completed cognitive, physical and auditory assessments that provided detailed measurements and reporting of their daily activities, blood pressure, hearing, and a myriad of other health and lifestyle factors.

As expected, the older the adults were, the more likely they were to have higher blood pressure readings. Unexpectedly, elevated blood pressure was not correlated with more advanced hearing loss. Instead, the team’s analysis revealed that physical function was significantly associated with better hearing

“These findings suggest that systolic blood pressure does not appear to be a meaningful predictor of hearing loss or cognitive performance in healthy older adults,” Neils-Strunjas says. “When taken together with the positive association between physical function and hearing, our research indicates that targeting physical activity directly – rather than relying solely on blood pressure management– could help preserve hearing and cognitive health. Aside from these findings, we recommend that anyone with high blood pressure consult their medical provider.”

Hearing loss is pervasive among older adults, with interventions such as hearing aids serving as the most common solution. However, experts in the field have identified preservation as the more effective approach, which suggests that a widespread effort toward preventing hearing loss through improving physical function could have amplified benefits and better outcomes for this growing segment of the population.

Article originally appeared on University of South Carolina