Northerners more likely to develop hearing loss
Deprivation, working in heavy industry and increased alcohol intake might be reasons for the disparity, say researchers.
Northerners are up to 85 per cent more likely to develop hearing loss than southerners, a new study suggests.
Researchers at the University of Manchester said deprivation, working in heavy industry and increased alcohol intake could be behind the differences, although they warned that the study could not prove causation.
To determine the geographical differences in hearing loss, the team looked at 8,263 participants aged 50-89 years old from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA).
They found that for people aged 61 to 70 year-olds, one quarter (24.6 per cent) of people in the North East and 22.6 per cent in Yorkshire and Humber, had hearing loss compared with 14.6 per cent in the South East.
Dr Dalia Tsimpida, a postdoctoral researcher based in the University’s Division of Medical Education, and primary investigator of the study, said: “Hearing loss is an important public health issue that costs the English economy over £25 billion a year in productivity and unemployment.
“We cannot imply causality at this stage; behind it might be the result of socio-economic factors such as high occupational noise exposure from manual occupations and differences in regions of England with strong and weak manufacturing industries.”
‘Socioeconomic and health disparities’
The study showed that by the time people reached 71 the differences between regions were growing smaller and had virtually vanished by the time people turned 80.
But when all the ages were combined, northerners over 50 were found to have a 13.5 per cent higher prevalence of hearing loss than southerners in England.
Professor Evangelos Kontopantelis, a senior author of the study, said: “Where people live plays an important role in their health, as the location shapes several environmental risks, as well as many other health effects.
“Applying a single percentage of prevalence estimates for all regions means that the northern part of the country with a history of socioeconomic and health disparities may be left behind in its needs."
The research was published in the International Journal of Audiology.
Co-author Dr Maria Panagioti, from The University of Manchester, added: “These findings have significant implications for health policy and planning for health services; the prevalence estimates of hearing loss should be calculated based on the actual population's needs and not purely on age demographics.”