Boomers hear better than their predecessors

Say what? The Associated Press reports on research recently published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, which shows the rate of hearing problems for boomers is falling. For men born between 1945 and 1949, the impairment rate was 36 percent; the impairment rate for the previous generation was almost double at 58 percent.

Overall, men showed an average 13 percent drop in the risk of hearing impairment for every five-year increase in their date of birth, the study found. For women, the decrease is less dramatic; the risk of impairment fell about 6 percent for every five-year increment.

Reasons for the decrease are unknown, according to the study's authors, but they point to less long-term exposure to loud working environments and even a decline in smoking as possible reasons. Improvements in health care, like better control of diabetes and heart disease, could also play a part.