Great! One more thing to worry about!
Traffic noise has been linked to heart attacks!
Bored researchers found that people who lived with louder sounds of traffic near their homes had a higher risk of heart attack — meaning that for every 10-decibel increase in traffic noise, there was 12% higher risk of heart attack.
The increase started around 40 dB.
They followed around 50,000 men and women ages 50 to 64. They then reported their lifestyle behaviors like diet and physical activity, as well as each place they lived over a 10-year period. The geographic location of their homes was then compared to their health reports. They even calculated how much traffic noise each person had been exposed to by analyzing traffic patterns!
1,600 people had a first attack and their risk was greater the louder the traffic noise near their home. This was even true when accounting for other factors like air pollution exposure, diet, gender and weight.
One explanation could be that the louder the noise, the more stress it creates. Living in a city isn’t like living next to a quietly babbling brook.
It could also stop people from getting the sleep they need.
Sleep’s SO important to our health!!
We get the feeling this really isn’t going to scare anyone off, though, and send them to live in South Dakota.
[Image via AP Images.]
