THE constant rumble of traffic is what brings many cities to life. And as the summer months roll in, the hustle and bustle of your neighbourhood is likely to drift in through your windows, flung open to cool your home. But research suggests the sounds that come could be making you sick.
Noise pollution has been linked with life-threatening conditions including cardiovascular problems, type 2 diabetes and dementia . Charlotte Clark, professor of epidemiology at St George’s University of London tells Sun Health: “Many of us don’t think of noise as being damaging but it has a huge impact on the health of the population. “In the UK, it is estimated that 9.
5million people are regularly exposed to harmful levels of road noise, 1.2million for railways and one million for aircraft noise. “This is estimated to cause 6,000 new cases of heart disease a year and 1,000 premature deaths.
And it’s likely these are underestimates as we are starting to see health affected at lower levels of noise.” Many studies link poor health and noise pollution back to sleep disturbance. Prof Clark says: “Your ears keep listening even when you are asleep and if there is a loud noise, it might wake you up or you might shift towards less restorative sleep .
“This means you get less deep sleep, which is not good for your health and is linked with many health issues including heart disease , obesity and mental health issues.” Here, Prof Clark reveals exactly what loud noises could be doin.
