Alcohol can affect hearing

Alcohol can affect hearing

A recent study by some UK researches has found that alcohol seems to temporarily drain a person's hearing -- particularly when it comes to discerning the sounds of conversation, and it may not be because of the noise.

To study the short-term effects of alcohol on hearing, the UK research team recruited healthy adults between the ages of 20 and 40 who had no history of hearing problems. The volunteers had their hearing tested before and after having a predetermined number of drinks in the research lab.

In this study conducted with 30 healthy volunteers, it was found that as the participants drank, their hearing became less acute. Lower-frequency hearing, which is necessary for discerning speech, suffered the most.

According to the study, the researchers noted that it's a "well observed phenomenon" that alcohol seems to build people's tolerance to loud noise. But bouts of so-called "cocktail party deafness" may not result from the noisy drinking environment alone.

The researchers found in general, the higher a volunteer's alcohol level -- as measured by breath test -- the greater the deterioration in hearing. The hearing loss tended to be more significant in relatively older volunteers, as well as those who said they had a history of heavy drinking.

The team further noted that it's not clear why drinking may have this effect, but alcohol could either damage the auditory nerves or affect the brain's processing of sound.

In this study, the hearing loss was short-lived. Volunteers who returned for tests the following week were back to their normal hearing levels.

However, it's possible that regular drinking could alter people's hearing over time, the researchers note.

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