Secondhand smoke innocent? Certainly not. It appears that secondhand smoke at a young age causes hearing loss in the teenage years.
When children are exposed to cigarette smoke they are more likely to have hearing loss during their teenage years. This is according to research from the NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City.
Hearing damage
The American scientists studied more than fifteen hundred teenagers between the ages of 12 and 19. During the study, passive exposure to smoke was considered hearing loss, health and family medical history.
What turned out? Secondhand smoke was found for hearing damage to care. The researchers found that the degree of hearing loss is strongly correlated with the levels of cotinine (a by-product of nicotine) in the blood. The smoke may also damage the circulation in the ears. In addition, more than 80 percent of the teenagers were not aware of their hearing damage.
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Problems
According to the scientists, early hearing loss can lead to problems in development and function † Still, teens are not screened for hearing loss unless there is a risk factor. It is still unknown at what age the damage actually arises.
