Smokers and people exposed to passive smoke are more likely to suffer hearing loss, a new study suggests.

UK scientists looked at almost 165,000 adults aged between 40 and 69. They found that smokers had a 15% increased risk of experiencing hear loss compared to non-smokers.

Passive smokers meanwhile had an increased risk of 28%.

"We found the more packets you smoke per week and the longer you smoke, the greater the risk you will damage your hearing," commented Dr Piers Dawes of the University of Manchester.

The scientists said that their findings show that smoking ‘may represent a significant cause of hearing loss worldwide'.

The reason for these findings remains unclear, but the scientists noted that many smokers also have heart disease.

"We are not sure if toxins in tobacco smoke affect hearing directly, or whether smoking-related cardiovascular disease causes microvascular changes that impact on hearing, or both," they said.

They pointed out that because people are now living longer, hearing loss is set to become a big public health issue.

"Hearing loss is often viewed as an inevitable consequence of aging, but as this research shows, this may not always be the case. Giving up smoking and protecting your ears from loud noise are two practical steps people can take today to prevent hearing loss later in life," the scientists added.

Details of these findings are published in the Journal of the Association for Research in Otolaryngology.