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Town planning and community development
Published in Ben Y.F. Fong, Martin C.S. Wong, The Routledge Handbook of Public Health and the Community, 2021
Carina Y.H. Lam, Joanna W.Y. Lee, Ted T.C. Chan
Urbanisation promotes rapid social and economic development, but at the same time, it leads to many environmental problems that are becoming increasingly contentious (Ioja et al., 2014). Land-use conflicts are a concern for planners, including noise pollution, health hazards, etc. For example, an issue of conflict is the potentially harmful emission produced from industrial facilities, having a negative effect on the ecosystem (Dunk et al., 2011). The noise pollution from transport will also reduce the quality of life in adjacent residential quarters. Such conflict is considered as health hazards when they become nuisances.
COVID-19 in France: A Multiphase and Multidimensional Approach to a Complex Societal Imbalance
Published in Abbas Rajabifard, Greg Foliente, Daniel Paez, COVID-19 Pandemic, Geospatial Information, and Community Resilience, 2021
Reduced Noise Pollution and Improved Air Quality. While containment has significantly reduced pollutant emissions, another more insidious pollution has decreased: noise. Marked by the decline in industrial activities, car or air traffic, a reduction in the average noise level of between 4 and 6 dB has been observed. Unfortunately, the truce is only provisional.
From listening to hearing
Published in Alan Bleakley, Educating Doctors’ Senses Through the Medical Humanities, 2020
A more pressing issue perhaps than cellular noise is noise pollution in clinical environments, creating stress for patients and clinicians alike. Ambient noise (as opposed to meaningful signal) is multidirectional, pervasive and tolerated only because those who work in it de-sensitise – or are an-aesthetised – to its presence after a while, adding further to the paradox that medical education and practice can educate for insensibility rather than sensibility, or unintentionally numb. For many, the addition of ‘background’ radio (often in waiting rooms in General Practice surgeries and hospitals) adds to noise rather than signal. Our challenge is how to produce an acoustic milieu for patients, scientists, clinicians and other workers, such as hospital porters, that is generative or blooming with quality and positive affordance. We can address this as a structural problem (common to all 21st-century environments). Ambient noise pollution generally is a health hazard, linked to hypertension, cardiac disease, depression, cognitive impairment and, of course, hearing damage (Basner et al. 2014; Godwin 2018). Excessive noise leads to excess production of cortisol, a stress hormone that damages blood vessels. Symptoms from noise pollution are also linked to social inequalities, where, for example, the less wealthy live on roadsides with busier traffic levels.
New determinants of mental health: the role of noise pollution. A narrative review
Published in International Review of Psychiatry, 2022
Alfonso Tortorella, Giulia Menculini, Patrizia Moretti, Luigi Attademo, Pierfrancesco Maria Balducci, Francesco Bernardini, Federica Cirimbilli, Anastasia Grazia Chieppa, Nicola Ghiandai, Andreas Erfurth
A literature search of the PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases was carried out from 1st January 2011 to 22th December 2021, by entering the following search string: ((noise) OR acoustic) AND pollution AND ((psychiatric disorder*) OR mental health). We included original research evaluating the relationship between noise pollution coming from different sources and mental health. Studies assessing the effects of noise on the development of psychiatric symptoms/psychiatric disorders as secondary outcomes were considered as well. Grey literature was included, if providing sufficient findings. As for studies with overlapping samples, we decided to include more that one study if adding relevant information. We did not include commentaries, letters to the editor, and reviews. We excluded research focussing on the effects of noise pollution on medical (e.g., cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological) conditions without reporting data on psychiatric symptoms and psychiatric disorders, as well as papers focussing on cognitive symptoms and disorders as isolated outcomes. Moreover, studies conducted on animal samples and those presenting only a hypothesis not supported by data were excluded. Two independent researchers (GM and FC) performed the literature search and double-blind screening of the results. Discrepancies were solved through consensus and a third researcher (AT) was consulted when needed.
Hearing health information in Malaysian public schools: a step towards addressing a public health concern
Published in International Journal of Audiology, 2021
Nur Amirah Zakaria, Nashrah Maamor, Nor Haniza Abdul Wahat
As shown in Table 1, information on Ear and hearing was covered in Form 2 and 3 Science subjects. Here, students learned about parts of the ear and the function of each, as well as the mechanism of hearing from when sound is collected by the pinna until its conversion to nerve impulses in the cochlea and later transferred to the brain through nerve cells. Students learned about Sound in Form 2 Science, including how the ear can differentiate sounds based on its strength and frequency. Students also learned about the frequency range that humans could hear in comparison to other animals. Explanations on related phenomena like echo and Doppler effects were also included, in reference to how sound energy can be reflected and absorbed. The topic of Noise was introduced in Form 2 Geography and later explained in Form 5 Science. In Geography, noise was said to disturb peace in a neighbourhood causing annoyance, using traffic noise and airports as examples. In Form 5 Science, students are told that noise pollution can cause hearing loss and affect general wellbeing. The example of noise sources given were noises from car engines and heavy vehicles. Students covered the topic of Hearing loss earlier in Form 3 Science, learning about the causes of hearing damage that include infection, injury, ageing, and continuous exposure to loud sounds. Students also learned that hearing loss can be medically managed or permanently damaged depending on where the problem lies within the ear. Hearing aids and cochlear implants were mentioned as the means to overcome permanent hearing loss.
Aircraft Noise Exposure and Subjective Sleep Quality: The Results of the DEBATS Study in France
Published in Behavioral Sleep Medicine, 2019
Ali-Mohamed Nassur, Marie Lefèvre, Bernard Laumon, Damien Léger, Anne-Sophie Evrard
Transportation noise is a major source of environmental noise pollution, and it represents a major public health issue. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), transportation noise is estimated to cause at least one million healthy life years lost every year in Western Europe, and sleep disorders are the most serious consequence with more than 900 thousand years of life lost every year, mostly related to road traffic noise (WHO, 2011). In addition, poor sleep, especially short sleep (< 6 hr), has been found to be associated with many major comorbidities, for example, obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, depression, and increased risk of mortality (Cappuccio, D’Elia, Strazzullo, & Miller, 2010; Cappuccio et al., 2008; Gangwisch et al., 2006; Grandner, Jackson, Pak, & Gehrman, 2012; Jones & Rhodes, 2013; Mallon, Broman, & Hetta, 2000; Phillips & Mannino, 2007; Tasali, Leproult, Ehrmann, & Van Cauter, 2008; Vgontzas et al., 2010).