Noisy traffic brings high levels of noise pollution and it may also increase the risk of stroke or bring early death, according to doctors in a study done in London, the BBC reported.
Using data of deaths and hospital admissions of 8.6 million people, researchers at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) found out that death among the elderly who are living near daytime traffic noise was common at four percent more than those who live in quieter neighborhoods. About 583,657 of these patients have been admitted to hospitals for heart disease or stroke.
The researchers said that road traffic noise has triggered blood pressure increase, stress and sleep problems, thus also increasing the risk of death among the individuals. Adults between the ages of 25-74 have a five percent risk of stroke in areas with traffic noise above 60 decibels (dB), while senior adults, or those above 74, and have a nine percent risk of stroke.
Road noise exceeding 55 dB has been proven to be harmful to human health, according to an earlier report from the World Health Organization, and millions of urban dwellers all over the world are subjected to this every day.
"Our findings contribute to the body of evidence suggesting reductions in traffic noise could be beneficial to our health," said Jaana Halonen from LSHTM in the BBC report.
"This is the largest study to date to investigate environmental noise and cardiovascular disease in the general population. Results suggested small increased population risks of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality and morbidity, particularly of stroke in the elderly, at moderate levels of road noise exposure. Findings are consistent with the larger body of evidence linking traffic noise exposure with hypertension," she added, according to Medical News Today.
The study, however, had some limitations, as it did not have data on how the people in these areas lived, or whether the elderly stayed home more often than the younger adults, according to Washington Post.
The findings were published in the European Heart Journal.
