In addition to being life-threatening, smoking and obesity could cause permanent hearing damage, a new study has found.

The latest research, carried out at Antwerp University, showed that smokers and obese people had difficulty picking out high frequency sounds.

Those that had been exposed to very loud noises in the workplace were the worst affected, however.

Dr Erik Fransen, one of the lead researchers at Antwerp University, said: "The hearing loss is proportional to how much you smoke and your body mass index (BMI). It starts getting worse once you have smoked regularly for more than one year."

Unfortunately for those affected, Dr Fransen explained that "once the damage has been caused, there is no way to repair it".

Researchers believe that smoking can disrupt the flow of blood around the body which in turn restricts oxygen. This process, together with a build up of toxic waste, is thought to damage the ear. ADNFCR-980-ID-18632693-ADNFCR

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