Thursday, August 23, 2012

How Healthy is Noise Pollution

Pollution affects us daily in how we feel, age and function. It enters our system in the foods we eat and drink, things we touch and the air we breathe but there is a very real pollution that’s not strictly managed by the government and can be equally alarming. This is noise pollution. The word noise actually originated from the Latin word nauseas, which is defined as discomfort or disgust.

Not all “noise” is “noise” to everyone

Noise pollution is considered to be any sound or sounds that are unpleasant to our hearing. One man’s noise may be another’s music, however, such as rap music. So the definition of noise is open to debate. Some younger people, for example, may claim they thrive on rap music while it may have grandma pulling out her hair and swallowing aspirin by the bucket full.  It may have a young mother who’s just put her youngster down for a much needed nap wanting to call 911 too. This little break may have been mom’s only chance of catching a little rest herself, but with a woken baby, this is virtually impossible. She has to function on yet another day on little or no rest. This is when sound becomes noise or nuisance. If sound is loud and disruptive, it may be considered noise.

Property values decrease in noisy areas

Homes located near airports may have a very good reason for having lower property values, as do properties located directly under the el train in NYC. Imagine having to constantly carry on conversations with your family shouting over the train or plane. Have you ever noticed that talking loudly for long periods of time causes tempers to flare? Constant environmental noises also contribute to significant hearing loss.

Let’s take a look at some of the other ways noise can affect our well-being

·         A rise in cardiovascular disease
·         Increased high blood pressure
·         *Sleep disturbances, which unleash a host of problems on their own
·         Tinnitus
·         Stress
·         Damage to our emotional health.
·         Relationship problems
·         Detrimental to plant and wildlife
·         Inability to concentrate
·         Increased violence
·         Mental instability
·         Increased irritability

*Constant noise which disrupts sleep can cause serious consequences.

Something as innocent as a loved one who snores, can be an ongoing source of sleep deprivation and may cause physical harm to those who’re constantly being kept awake. A sleepy person is at risk of falling asleep while driving, or having an accident while operating machinery. Their health and lives are at risk as a result of constant sleep deprivation. According to the statistics of 100,000 police-reported crashes 71,000 are injured and 1,550 are killed annually due to drowsy driving in the U.S. This highlights the fact that sleep deprivation is a serious issue.


Even if we ignore noise our bodies may be reacting


So while we are busy trying to pretend that Johnny’s piano practice is not bothering us nightly, after all it will get better, (won’t it?) it may be taking a toll on us so we need to learn ways to offset the noise pollution. Some ways may be to wear a head set with our own relaxing melody playing, take a quiet time out, use ear plugs, draw boundaries of when and where we allow noise and getting some rest when possible.

This post comes to you with the compliments of speedyloan.com

Thanks to this informative article written by Ms. Judy  SheldonWalker

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She won an international smile contest for the month of October 2009. This contest was sponsored by Division of Pediatric Dentistry, Department of Oral Health Sciences, University of British Columbia, Canada.

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