Hearing is one of our most vital senses. It helps us stay alert, connect with others, and make sense of the world. But not everyone hears the same way. While most people know hearing tends to decline with age, new research shows that sex and environment play an even bigger role.

Scientists have now confirmed that women generally have more sensitive hearing than men. The study, published in Scientific Reports, also uncovers how local surroundings – forests, cities, mountains – shape the way we hear.

These findings reshape how we understand hearing across different human populations and could improve how we approach hearing loss.

This global investigation, led by Dr. Patricia Balaresque from the Center for Biodiversity and Environmental Research (CRBE) in France and Professor Turi King from the University of Bath, brought together researchers from multiple countries.

Their work is the first to explore how biology, geography, and culture intersect to shape human hearing.

The team tested hearing in 450 individuals across 13 populations. Participants came from diverse settings, including Ecuador, England, Gabon, South Africa, and Uzbekistan.

These locations were selected for their rich variety in ecology and culture. The goal was to go beyond urban, Western groups often overrepresented in medical research.

By choosing people from rural villages, high-altitude settlements, forests, and cities, the study captured how different environments might impact how we hear.

For the tests, the researchers used a technique called Transient-Evoked Otoacoustic Emissions (TEOAE). This method measures the cochlea’s response to sound and tracks how the ear sends signals to the brain.

This approach allowed scientists to understand not just how loudly someone hears but how their hearing responds across different sound frequencies. Until now, very little work had examined how sex or geographic setting affects these biological reactions. The results were striking.

It’s long been accepted that hearing sensitivity drops as people age. However, this study revealed that sex plays an even greater role than age. Across every population tested, women had an average of two decibels more sensitive hearing than men. This trend held true regardless of location, language, or lifestyle.

The differences also extended beyond basic sensitivity. Women performed better in other hearing tests, including those involving speech perception. This suggests not only greater auditory sensitivity but also superior brain processing of sound.

“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,” said Professor King.

“This could be due to different exposure to hormones during development in the womb, due to men and women having slight structural differences in cochlear anatomy.”

Professor King noted that, in addition to having higher hearing sensitivity, women also perform better in other hearing tests and speech perception, indicating that their brains are also better at processing the information.

“We don’t really know why this might be, but given the detrimental effect of noise on overall health such as sleep quality and increased cardiovascular disease, having more sensitive hearing in noisy environments may not always be a good thing.”

Next to sex, the most important factor influencing hearing was the environment.

Where a person lived not only affected their response to sound volume but also altered how they processed different sound frequencies. People living in forests had the best hearing sensitivity overall, while those in high-altitude regions showed the weakest.

The researchers believe this may be due to environmental adaptation. Forests are full of non-human sounds – bird calls, rustling leaves, distant movements – that demand attention.

In such settings, sharper hearing may have offered survival advantages. In contrast, high-altitude environments offer less auditory stimulation and involve other stressors like low oxygen and air pressure, which might dull hearing over time.

“Our findings challenge existing assumptions and highlight the need to consider both biological and environmental factors when studying hearing. Identifying drivers behind natural hearing variation will improve our understanding of hearing loss and individual differences in noise tolerance,” said Dr. Balaresque.

Urban life presented a different kind of challenge. People from city areas showed a distinct shift in sensitivity toward higher frequencies.

The researchers suggest this may be the result of needing to filter out low-frequency noise from traffic and construction. Over time, the brain might adapt by tuning in more sharply to higher-pitched sounds.

This kind of adjustment could represent a modern form of sensory adaptation. Just as vision can change in response to light conditions, hearing might shift to suit the surrounding noise environment. While this ability may help urban residents focus on speech in noisy areas, it could also limit their range of auditory perception over time.

Professor King collected samples from the UK participants while at the University of Leicester.

“We wanted to investigate in more detail what factors shape our hearing and the diversity of hearing sensitivities and see how our hearing has adapted to our local environment,” she added.

Another theory links hearing sensitivity to pollution. People living in quieter, less polluted regions – like forests – might retain better hearing due to lower exposure to environmental toxins.

In contrast, city dwellers may be constantly exposed to noise, smoke, and chemicals that harm ear structures over time.

Hearing loss is not just a matter of inconvenience. Studies have connected poor hearing to cognitive decline, disturbed sleep, and even heart disease. These findings suggest that understanding how hearing works in different settings could help protect public health in more targeted ways.

This research also adds to the ongoing conversation about human evolution. Our hearing is not static – it reflects both our biology and the world we live in. As soundscapes change, so too might our ability to perceive them.

“We know that humans are continuing to evolve, so the next question is whether our hearing is able to change in response to different environments generally or whether there are genetic adaptations involved,” said Professor King.

This study opens the door to further research on how our senses respond to change. It invites us to rethink hearing not just as a fixed ability, but as something deeply shaped by sex, biology, and the places we call home.

The study is published in the journal Scientific Reports.

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