(05-08-10) Consumption of omega-3 fatty acids and fish and risk of age-related hearing loss1,2,3

Bamini Gopinath, Victoria M Flood, Elena Rochtchina, Catherine M McMahon and Paul Mitchell
1 From the Centre for Vision Research, Department of Ophthalmology, and Westmead Millennium Institute (BG, ER, and PM), and the Menzies Centre for Health Policy (BG), University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia; the Faculty of Health and Behavioural Science, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia (VMF); and the Centre for Language Sciences, Linguistics Department, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia (CMM).
2 The Blue Mountains Eye Study and Hearing Study were supported by the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (grants 974159, 991407, 211069, and 262120).
3 Address correspondence to P Mitchell, Centre for Vision Research, University of Sydney, Westmead Hospital, Hawkesbury Rd, Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia. E-mail: [email protected] .
Background: Identification of modifiable risk factors that could prevent or slow the development of age-related hearing loss (presbycusis) would be valuable. Dietary polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) intake may be related to age-related hearing loss.
Objective: We aimed to determine the association between dietary intakes of omega-3 (n?3) PUFAs and fish and the risk of presbycusis.
Design: The Blue Mountains Hearing Study is a population-based survey of age-related hearing loss (1997?1999 to 2002?2004). We collected dietary data by using a semiquantitative food-frequency questionnaire and calculated PUFA and fish intakes. In 2956 participants (aged 50 y), we measured presbycusis, which we defined as the pure-tone average of frequencies 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 kHz >25 decibels of hearing loss.
Results: There was an inverse association between total n?3 PUFA intake and prevalent hearing loss [odds ratio (OR) per SD increase in energy-adjusted n?3 PUFAs: 0.89; 95% CI: 0.81, 0.99]. There was an inverse association between long-chain n?3 PUFAs and incident hearing loss (OR per SD increase in long-chain n?3 PUFAs: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.60, 0.97). Participants who had 2 servings of fish/wk compared with participants who had <1 serving of fish/wk had a significantly reduced risk (42%) of developing presbycusis at follow-up (multivariate-adjusted OR: 0.58; 95% CI: 0.35, 0.95). There was an association between consumption of 1 to <2 servings/wk of fish and a reduced risk of a progression of hearing loss (OR: 0.53; 95% CI: 0.32, 0.88).
Conclusions: There was an inverse association between higher intakes of long-chain n?3 PUFAs and regular weekly consumption of fish and hearing loss. Dietary intervention with n?3 PUFAs could prevent or delay the development of age-related hearing loss.

Source: Am J Clin Nutr 92: 416-421, 2010.

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