 Exposure to noise causes physiological activation including increase in heart rate and blood pressure, peripheral vasoconstriction and thus increased peripheral vascular resistance. 

Physiological responses to noise exposure

- Effects of noise have been shown on systolic blood pressure (but not diastolic pressure), total cholesterol, total triglycerides, blood viscosity, platelet count and glucose level. 

- A recent Swedish study found that the prevalence of hypertension was higher among people exposed to time-weighted energy averaged aircraft noise levels of at least 55 dBA or maximum levels above 72 dBA around Arlanda airport, Stockholm.

Noise and cardiovascular disease in the community

- Many occupational studies have suggested that individuals chronically exposed to continuous noise at levels of at least 85 dB have higher blood pressure than those not exposed to noise. 

- A recent pioneering longitudinal industrial noise study has shown that noise levels predicted raised systolic and diastolic pressure in those doing complex but not simple jobs, and predicts increased mortality risk. 

Occupational studies: noise and high blood pressure

It focuses three main aspects: 

- Physiological responses to noise exposure

- Occupational studies: noise and high blood pressure

- Noise and cardiovascular disease in the community

Syracuse University

Non-auditory effects of noise on health: 

- Noise and sleep disturbance

- Noise exposure and performance

- Noise and cardiovascular disease

- Endocrine responses to noise

- Noise and psychiatric disorder

- Combined effects of noise exposure and other stressors

- Noise and non-auditory health effects in children

Noise pollution: non-auditory effects on health

Stansfeld, S. A., &amp; Matheson, M. P. (2003). Noise pollution: Non-auditory effects on health. British Medical Bulletin, 68(1), 243–257. https://doi.org/10.1093/bmb/ldg033 

Reference- Noise pollution: non-auditory effects on health

- Noise exposure during sleep may increase blood pressure, heart rate and finger pulse amplitude as well as body movements. 

- Perceived sleep quality, mood and performance in terms of reaction time all decreased following sleep disturbed by road traffic noise. 

- Studies on noise abatement show that, by reducing indoor noise level, the amount of REM sleep and slow wave sleep can be increased

Noise and sleep disturbance

- Performance may be impaired if speech is played while a subject reads and remembers verbal material, although this effect is not found with non-speech noise.

- Noise exposure may also slow rehearsal in memory, influence processes of selectivity in memory, and choice of strategies for carrying out tasks.

-  There is also evidence that noise may reduce helping behavior, increase aggression and reduce the processing of social cues seen as irrelevant to task performance.

Noise exposure and performance

- The general pattern of endocrine responses to noise is indicative of noise as a stressor, exciting short-term physiological responses.

- Exposure to high intensity noise in industry has been linked in some studies to raised levels of noradrenaline and adrenaline. 

- Some studies have shown raised cortisol in relation to noise. 


Endocrine responses to noise

Mental ill-health also increases annoyance. 

Noise and psychiatric disorder

Noise effects on health may be augmented by, or in turn may augment, the impact of other stressors on health. Stressors may act synergistically, antagonistically or not at all.

Combined effects of noise exposure and other stressors

Children are still developing both physically and cognitively, there is a possible risk that exposure to noise may have irreversible negative consequences for them

- Cognition

- Motivation

- Cardiovascular effects

- Endocrine disturbance

- Noise annoyance

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