Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Speech Perception

The American Academy of Audiology (2026) recently published a review of an updated report regarding aerobic physical activity levels in US adults. In this report, Elgaddal and Kramarow (2026) found that 47.2 percent of adults met the recommended guidelines for aerobic physical activity.

These results may have implications for audiologists. Bridget Carey and Jonathan Peellee, from the Northeastern Bouvé College of Health Sciences, are conducting a study examining the relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness and speech perception in noise. Early results have shown that “participants with higher fitness levels are performing about 15 percent better on speech-in-noise tasks than their less athletic counterparts” (Poltorak, 2026). They hypothesize that exercise benefits the areas of the brain related to executive function. Carey and Peelle plan on evaluating this theory through the use of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). While the study is still in its early stages, Carey is working on her own cardiorespiratory fitness by training for her fifth marathon. 

References

American Academy of Audiology (2026, October 16). Aerobic physical activity in U.S adults: An updated report. https://www.audiology.org/aerobic-physical-activity-in-u-s-adults-an-updated-report/

Elgaddal, N., & Kramarow, E. A. (2026). Aerobic physical activity among adults age 18 and older: United States, 2024. NCHS Data Brief, 555, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.15620/cdc/174653

Poltorak, K. (2026, September 4). Break a sweat, hear more? Early results point to a surprising link between fitness and speech perception. Medical Press. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-early-results-link-speech-perception.html#google_vignette