3 Health Effects of Noise
Noise can be pleasant when it involves birds chirping or our favorite song on the radio, but very unpleasant when it is too loud or unwanted. In fact, excessive noise can even cause ill effects on our mental and physical well-being. Here are three health effects of noise.
- Sleep Issues
Hearing noise while sleeping causes your body to constrict its blood vessels and hasten its heartbeat, even if you do not actually wake from the noise. This results in a night of less restful and restorative sleep, making you feel less motivated and less focused the next day. Deep sleep is one of the most important components of a good night’s rest, and any noise that disturbs this will be detrimental to your health if it occurs on a regular basis. If noise often occurs where you sleep, consider investing in noise reducing caster equipment such as a white noise machine or fan.
- Hearing Problems
Frequent, chronic exposure to loud noise can lead to many problems with your ears. A risky level of exposure has been defined as listening to music at 90 decibels or above for an hour every day. At best, you might acquire temporary hearing loss that is reversible after staying in a quiet environment for a certain amount of time. At worst, this exposure can cause permanent hearing loss or tinnitus, which is a persistent and often uncontrollable ringing or buzzing in the ears.
- Hypertension
Several studies have found a link between exposure to excessive noise and an increase in blood pressure, often resulting in hypertension. This could be caused by the stress of being around excessive noise or other factors. To be safe, get your blood pressure checked often if you work or live in an excessively noisy environment.
If you experience any of these three health issues, take into consideration the possibility that exposure to noise could be a factor.
