TThe world is getting louder. Population growth means more traffic and construction; the continued advance of technology means more bells and whistles and the rattle and hum of the server farms that keep everything running. In an environment where 46% of people say they like to watch videos without headphones in a public place, even nature has trouble keeping up: urban birds often sing louder, longer or at a higher pitch than their compatriots. “The day will come,” says Nobel Prize-winning bacteriologist Robert Koch reportedly once said, “when man will have to fight noise as relentlessly as cholera and the plague.” That day could well come: the European Environment Agency (EEA) estimates that at least one in five Europeans are now exposed to noise levels considered harmful to their health, and this number is expected to increase.
So what is the real problem as the volume of society increases? The dangers of pneumatic drills and emergency sirens are clear: both operate close to the 120 decibel level that can damage hearing with very short exposure. What’s even more insidious is the background noise that many of us have to live with: roads, railways and even loud stereos, all of which can cause problems down the road. “The EEA recently estimated that in Britain 9.5 million people are exposed to harmful levels of road traffic noise, 1.2 million to harmful railway noise and 1 million people to harmful aircraft noise,” said Charlotte Clark, professor of environmental epidemiology at St. .Georges. University of London. “In Britain, these levels are estimated to cause more than 6,000 new cases of ischemic heart disease, 1,000 premature deaths and 750,000 cases of sleep disorders every year. These are probably underestimates.”
Part of the problem is simply how stressful it is to live with constant noise, even if it is relatively low. We’re often powerless against noise, whether it’s a drum and bass-loving neighbor, someone watching TikTok on the bus, or leaf blowers on the street outside – and that can bring a cascade of effects. “Living with noise every day is annoying, and annoyance is a stress response,” says Prof. Clark. “When experienced over time, the stress hormones released affect mood and can cause a range of biological changes in the body that affect cardiovascular health. In the long term, chronic noise exposure is also associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure, stroke and dementia. It is estimated that aircraft, road and rail traffic noise is associated with a 2-3% increase in depression risk per 10 decibel increase.” Decibels are measured logarithmically, so if something increases in volume by 10dB, it is actually about twice as loud.
Even when we sleep, noise can affect us. Obviously this affects our ability to fall asleep, but it can also fragment sleep, pushing us away from restorative REM sleep and causing us to spend more time in superficial stages of sleep. “When you sleep, your ears are on all the time,” says Prof. Clark. “Noise increases your heart rate and contributes to other problems – which, if done over an extended period of time, cause the same cardiovascular risks I talked about earlier.”
So what’s the solution? Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all answer and it is often very difficult for individuals to reduce their noise exposure. Turning off devices at night is the simplest way to reduce unnecessary sleep interruptions; Earplugs can also help, as many NHS audiology departments offer options shaped to your ears. Noise canceling headphones can be useful in public. If you’re concerned about the decibel level of your music, there are apps available to check this.
On a larger level, though, noise is a choice we make as a society: it’s about flight paths and traffic levels, and how much we lubricate our heavy machinery. In some areas, more greenery may be a solution: “noise buffers” consisting of trees and shrubs can reduce noise by 5-10 dB for every 30 meters of forest width. In other cases, solutions may include stricter enforcement of speed limits, a reassessment of the noise levels workers should be exposed to, or the introduction of directional sirens. It’s probably fair to say that noise pollution is a bigger problem than most of us are willing to accept. Maybe it’s time to start shouting about it.