In the largest study yet of the impact of air pollution, the impact of noise pollution was assessed as well. The research revealed the combination made the original problem even worse and with physical consequences. (Science Daily: World’s largest study shows effects of long-term exposure to air pollution and traffic noise on blood pressure)
The trouble with city noise is we get somewhat inured to it and only exceptional noises get through to us but the background din is always there. John Cage found fascination and interestingly in listening to the noise around us to discern what's in it, perhaps become a part of it. Man's ability to find art in things which are actually problems is charming but the effect was measured and likely not much to your satisfaction.
The study, which is published October 25 in the European Heart Journal, found that among adults, up to one extra person per 100 people of the same age group living in the most polluted areas of cities would develop high blood pressure (hypertension) compared to those living in the less polluted areas. This risk is similar to the effect of being overweight with a body mass index (BMI) between 25-30 compared to people with normal weight (BMI 18.5-25). High blood pressure is the most important risk factor for premature illness and death.
This study is one of the first to investigate both air pollution and traffic noise simultaneously and it found that traffic noise is associated with an increase in cases of hypertension as well. The way the study was conducted enabled the researchers to estimate the risk that was linked to air pollution and the risk linked to noise separately. The association of air pollution with hypertension remained even when exposure to traffic noise was considered in the analysis. The researchers say this is an important finding because there are differing ways of reducing air pollution and noise.
The trouble with city noise is we get somewhat inured to it and only exceptional noises get through to us but the background din is always there. John Cage found fascination and interestingly in listening to the noise around us to discern what's in it, perhaps become a part of it. Man's ability to find art in things which are actually problems is charming but the effect was measured and likely not much to your satisfaction.
The study, which is published October 25 in the European Heart Journal, found that among adults, up to one extra person per 100 people of the same age group living in the most polluted areas of cities would develop high blood pressure (hypertension) compared to those living in the less polluted areas. This risk is similar to the effect of being overweight with a body mass index (BMI) between 25-30 compared to people with normal weight (BMI 18.5-25). High blood pressure is the most important risk factor for premature illness and death.
This study is one of the first to investigate both air pollution and traffic noise simultaneously and it found that traffic noise is associated with an increase in cases of hypertension as well. The way the study was conducted enabled the researchers to estimate the risk that was linked to air pollution and the risk linked to noise separately. The association of air pollution with hypertension remained even when exposure to traffic noise was considered in the analysis. The researchers say this is an important finding because there are differing ways of reducing air pollution and noise.
- Science Daily
The risk of one percent is not particularly high but this only reviews one cause of hypertension and there are many (e.g. smoking, etc). An increase for any reason is regrettable and maybe more so when it's from a surprising source. In retrospect, it makes perfect sense as the constant background noise has to grind on the psyche when our ears our the early-warning system for threats. Each time we alert at all due to some foreign sound it must excite some sense in us and take a small cost.
The news isn't such a terrible drag since it indicates substantial benefit to soundproofing your pad and hopefully you have the wherewithal to do that. Probably well-off types have already spent quite a bit on soundproofing in, say, Manhattan if only for comfort but it turns out there is a health benefit as well, albeit a relatively small one.
Here you go, now you can write off your soundproofing costs as a medical expense to reduce your taxes (almost certainly illegal). Regardless of the possible physical impact, the study does make clear the noise does have an impact, even when it seems to result in hypertension in a relative few. To be One with the Oneness and all that kozmik goodness, it seems required to either get out of the city or pony up the dollars for real soundproofing.
With the best of soundproofing, there's the reverse problem of sterilizing your local sound environment. It won't have so much as the sound of a cricket and there's probably a psyche impact from that as well. 'It was quiet, too quiet' is a lousy way to start a book but it's true total silence can be disconcerting because we wonder if something is wrong but we just can't hear it.
There needs to be a lot more of these sound studies and there's some really twisted research involving anechoic chambers which create an almost entirely soundless environment. It's said you can even hear atoms bouncing off your ear drum and that sounds a tad extreme but it's also said people get nuts after about fifteen minutes. Therefore the consideration high performance soundproofing may have detriments of a different kind.
(Ed: just full of doom and gloom tonight!)
Not at all since the question of dealing with total silence applies also to the Rock City which defaults to high levels of sound-proofing due to the stone walls. Therefore the challenge is to create a convincing and comfortable ambience even if it's only a light background of crickets chirping in the night. The audio pollution doesn't seem such a difficult thing to manage except for the expense.
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