The old adage may state that moms have eyes in the back of their heads, but a new study suggests that women also possess more sensitive hearing than men. This research, recently published in the journal Scientific Reports, evaluated various factors affecting hearing sensitivity, including gender, age, and environment.
Led by Dr. Patricia Balaresque at the Centre for Biodiversity and Environmental Research in Toulouse, France, the study involved hearing tests performed on 448 individuals from 13 distinct communities across Ecuador, England, Gabon, South Africa, and Uzbekistan.
The findings indicated that hearing sensitivity is predominantly influenced by the subjects’ gender and environmental factors, followed closely by age and the difference between left and right ear sensitivity.
In a press release, Dr. Balaresque remarked, ‘Our findings challenge existing assumptions and highlight the need to consider both biological and environmental factors when studying hearing.’
To evaluate hearing sensitivity, researchers utilized transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE), a technique that measures the cochlea’s ability to generate and transmit an acoustic response following sound stimulation. The cochlea, a spiral-shaped cavity within the inner ear, serves a critical role in converting sound waves into electrical impulses that the brain interprets.
Throughout the testing, women demonstrated an average higher sensitivity of two decibels compared to men across all populations studied. Dr. Turi King, a co-author of the study and professor at the University of Bath, stated, ‘We were surprised to find that women had two decibels more sensitive hearing across all the populations we measured, and this accounted for most of the variations between individuals.’ He noted that this could be attributed to hormonal differences during development, alongside slight structural variances in cochlear anatomy.
Additionally, women outperformed men in various hearing tests and speech perception assessments, suggesting a superior ability for the brain to process auditory information.
King added, ‘We don’t really know why this might be, but considering the detrimental effect of noise on overall health, having more sensitive hearing in noisy environments may not always be a good thing.’
While age also influenced hearing sensitivity—with older age linked to worsened hearing—the differences observed between sexes were more pronounced. Furthermore, the study found that ecological environments significantly impacted hearing sensitivity, with urban settings shifting hearing profiles towards higher frequencies due to continuous exposure to urban noise.
This study represents an important step in understanding how gender and environment interact to influence auditory capabilities and opens the door for further research on the evolving nature of human hearing.
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