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Women who consume lots of fish and fatty acids are less likely to suffer hearing loss compared to those who consume less.

"Acquired hearing loss is a highly prevalent and often disabling chronic health condition," researcher Dr. Sharon G. Curhan, of the Brigham and Women's Hospital Channing Division of Network Medicine, said in a news release. "Although a decline in hearing is often considered an inevitable aspect of aging, the identification of several potentially modifiable risk factors has provided new insight into possibilities for prevention or delay of acquired hearing loss."

The latest study used data from the Nurses' Health Study II, which involved 65,215 women who were monitored from 1991 to 2009. Researchers found that women who ate two or more servings of fish per week were 20 percent less likely to suffer hearing loss. Researchers noted that both higher consumption of fish and higher intake of long-chain omega-3PUFA were independently inversely associated with risk of hearing loss.

"Consumption of any type of fish (tuna, dark fish, light fish, or shellfish) tended to be associated with lower risk. These findings suggest that diet may be important in the prevention of acquired hearing loss," Curhan concluded.

The findings were published September 10 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (AJCN).