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By Nina Avramova, CNN
One in five Europeans is regularly exposed to noise levels that could significantly harm their health, announced the World Health Organization, which updated Tuesday the guidelines on these levels in Europe.
Noise in the environment is among the "major health risks related to the environment", according to the report of the WHO.
More than 100 million Europeans are affected each year by road traffic noise. "The noise remains a concern," said Dr. Dorota Jarosiska, Program Manager for Living and Working Environments at the WHO Regional Office for Europe.
The new guidelines are "an important update", given evidence and links to health issues, said Stephen Stansfeld, a professor at Barts and Queen Mary University in London and chair of the Guideline Development Group. , an independent organization that has advised WHO on these guidelines.
Excessive noise can affect blood pressure, hypertension and heart disease, which can lead to heart attacks and cardiovascular disease mortality. Cognition and the health of children are also affected.
Jonathan Gale, a professor of cell biology and director of the UCL Ear Institute, wrote in an e – mail that he "welcomed the new WHO guidelines, which put the spotlight on the health of people. human impact of noise exposure ".
This report, the first since 1999 to deal with noise levels, included considerations of new sources of noise such as wind turbines and "recreational noise", which included music in discotheques, pubs, music courts, fitness, sporting events and concerts, as well as by personal listening devices.
Two groups of independent experts in the field of environmental noise reviewed recent research and helped develop guidelines on acceptable noise levels 24 hours a day and night.
The new recommendations suggested reducing the average noise levels of road traffic below 53 decibels, which is equivalent to hearing a dishwasher in the next room. At night, traffic noise was recommended at 45 dB. The WHO said that 40% of residents of the European Union are exposed to traffic noise levels greater than 55 dB.
Stephen Turner, elected president of the Institute of Acoustics in the UK, believes this reduction "can be achieved".
"The problem is that a lot of people are affected, and I'm not sure I have the technology to guarantee that reduction without affecting movement and connectivity," he added.
For railways, noise from aircraft and wind turbines, an average level of 44 dB at 54 dB was recommended, depending on the source. It is suggested that aircraft noise at night be limited to less than 40 dB, as higher levels of aircraft noise are associated with adverse effects on sleep.
It was recommended to maintain the leisure noise – which is generally desired – at an average of 70 dB. Damage to hearing results can be related to the source and, therefore, we have a higher tolerance for the desired noises.
The WHO published guidelines on community noise in 1999 and night noise in 2009. In 2010, member states in the Europe region asked for guidelines including noise from recreation and wind turbines.
Noise pollution is very diverse. According to the report, each source has different loudness and coherence characteristics. The health effects of each type of noise pollution therefore vary. However, the new guidelines are based on examined evidence that noise exposure poses risks of adverse health consequences. "The most common impacts are discomfort and sleep disturbances," said Stansfeld.
Gale noted, "Exposure to environmental noise can lead to hearing loss that in the long run can lead to social isolation and [an] impact on health and well-being. The level and duration of exposure are important factors.
"However, we know much less about the effects of exposure to low levels of noise in the environment over long periods of time," he added. "We think that such noise is unlikely to affect our sensory hair cells. [in our ears] but may affect our brain processes and perhaps our mental health. "
Children were particularly affected by aircraft noise, evidence showing effects on reading comprehension and the development of metabolic syndromes, such as obesity and diabetes. These effects can be mitigated by the chronic stress of being exposed to traffic noise.
Turner noted that health effects, such as the increased risk of heart attacks, manifested themselves at a "high exposure" to noise. "If we focus on reducing the high exposure [of noise pollution]we can reduce these health risks. "
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