The #1 Food (Yes, Food!) That Helps With Hearing, According to Audiologists

Emily Laurence

Couple over 50 making food in the kitchen to help with their hearing

Most people know that certain foods can help support vision health, but the connection between diet and hearing is talked about less often. However, the reality is that scientific research has shown a clear link between diet and healthy hearing, particularly age-related hearing loss. 

This is especially pertinent considering that 5% of adults between the ages of 45 and 54 have disabling hearing loss, a rate that increases to 10% for adults between the ages of 55 and 64. More than half of adults 75 and older have disabling hearing loss. 

Want to protect your hearing as well as you can through what you eat? Find out what foods can help, according to audiologists. 

Related: The One Thing Audiologists Say You Should Never, Ever Do if You Want to Protect Your Hearing as You Age

The Connection Between Healthy Diet and Lifestyle Habits and Hearing

Katie Koebel, M.A., an audiologist and Senior Manager of Audiology at HearingLife Canada, explains that the reason why there’s a connection between diet and hearing is that certain nutrients help protect against hearing loss. “Research suggests potassium, zinc and magnesium each have properties that help different symptoms related to hearing loss,” she says.

“Your inner ear is a delicate set of organs that are susceptible to damage from aging, noise exposure and reduced blood flow. Over time, damage to the inner ear can result in hearing loss or tinnitus, which is ringing in the ears,” explains Dr. Jenn Schumacher, AuD, an audiologist and Medical Communications Manager at GN/ReSound.

Related: Expert Tips to Protect Your Hearing—And Know When It's Time for Hearing Aids

While diet can play a role in age-related hearing loss, Dr. Schumacher says the best way to protect your ears is to avoid dangerously loud sounds or use hearing protection when that’s not possible. She says that it’s also important to avoid smoking, which has also been scientifically linked to age-related hearing loss.

“Healthy habits such as not smoking, exercise and a healthy diet support your ears,” Dr. Schumacher says. She points to one study showing that adults who reported eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, protein and vitamin D were less likely to say they experienced difficulties with their hearing, while a diet higher in protein and vitamin B12 (folate) was associated with a reduced likelihood of tinnitus.

Related: Wait—Why Is My Ear Ringing? Audiologists Explain When You Should Worry

The #1 Food That Can Help With Hearing, According to Audiologists

With all of this in mind, what foods should you start eating regularly if you want to support your hearing? If you’re going to eat any food every day for the sake of your ears, Koebel says bananas are a great one to start with due to their high potassium content. “Potassium helps to regulate fluid levels in the inner ear, which tend to decrease as we age. As these fluid levels decrease, we become more susceptible to age-related hearing loss,” she explains.

Not into bananas? Koebel says that spinach and avocados are also great sources of potassium.

Bananas also have another one of the nutrients Koebel says is good for hearing: zinc. “Zinc can help regulate cellular activity in the ear. Altered cellular activity in the ear may impact tinnitus or ringing in the ears, which is strongly linked to hearing loss,” she says, adding that zinc has cochlear antioxidant effects, which help reduce this symptom.

Other sources of zinc include oysters, beef, pumpkin seeds, turkey, cheese, lentils and brown rice.

As Koebel mentioned earlier, magnesium is another important nutrient for supporting hearing. It’s also another nutrient that’s found in bananas. “Magnesium is another mineral that can help protect against noise-induced hearing loss by fighting free radicals in the ear cell mitochondria,” Koebel says.

While eating bananas regularly can help support hearing, Dr. Schumacher explains that what’s most important is to have a well-rounded diet. That way, your body (including your ears) is getting the wide variety of nutrients it needs to thrive. As the scientific study highlighted earlier showed, getting enough protein, vitamin D and vitamin B12 are also important, key info to keep in mind when doing your meal planning.

If you are already eating a nutrient-rich diet, know that you are doing your part to protect against age-related hearing loss. If not, consider this yet another reason to start!

Next up, these are the best over-the-counter hearing aids you can find at Walmart.

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