Older Black Americans, especially men, are much more likely to have good hearing than White Americans, according to research published in the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research. Esme Fuller-Thomson, PhD, and colleagues conducted a secondary data analysis using the 2017 American Community Survey (ACS), with a replication analysis of 2016 ACS. Hearing loss, age, race/ethnicity, education level, and household income were based on self-report. The researchers found that Black Americans aged 65 and older were nearly half as likely to report serious hearing loss in 2016 and 2017 (approximately 9%) as White Americans in that age group (approximately 15%). After accounting for age, sex, income, and education levels, older Black people were 91% less likely to have hearing loss than White people in the same age group. Relevant factors may include racial/ ethnic differences in diet, smoking, noise exposure, and bone density, the study team noted.
