Impact of Noise Pollution on Mental Health
Introduction
Noise is increasingly becoming a major threat to both human and animal life. In last few decades, noise pollution has increased considerably in every urban area with an ever-increasing population and heavy load of traffic on roads. Since noise is not a palpable matter one can see, taste or smell, over the years noise pollution has received very limited attention compared to other types of pollution like air or water pollution. Due to the increasing urbanization and industrial growth, environmental noise caused by transportation systems and machines, aircraft, motor vehicles, trains, loud music and constant hubbub of city life has completely disarrayed the normal equilibrium of human life. With the growing rate of population, humans have become more exposed to an increasing level of noise. Several studies and researches have revealed the adverse effects of noise on human health. Continuous exposure to noise pollution can lead one to stress related ailments, hypertension, hearing impairment, sleep disruption, speech interference and lost productivity. Noise not only makes people victims of an array of health hazards, noise also impacts people psychologically putting them through a lot of noise induced anxiety. This paper will discuss about the problem of sound pollution in cities, different colors and textures of sound pollution and its effect on human being, effect of sound pollution on mental health and legislation on sound pollution in United States and United Kingdom.
Noise pollution refers to the excessive disturbing noise that may put the normal balance of human as well as animal life under stress. Traditionally, noise pollution is defined as an unwanted or disturbing sound that disrupts the peace of one's life interfering with his normal activities like sleeping, reading and conversation (EPA, 2012). The constant 'annoyance' created by noise pollution impacts the overall health of those surrounded by this pollution.
Types of Noise
Based on the types of complaints received on noise pollution, noise has been divided into three main categories - domestic noise, commercial noise and street noise (NBC, 2014). Domestic noise includes late night parties with loud music, burglar alarms and barking dogs. Commercial noise includes noise emitting from factory sites, construction sites, music from clubs or pubs, delivery noise, chiller noise and noise from air-conditioning systems. Street noise includes noise coming from motor vehicles and other transportation systems, noise created by vendors selling items on streets, the use of loudspeakers, ice cream chimes and machineries operating on the streets (NBC, 2014).
Noise in Metro Cities
Most of the world's busiest metropolitan cities are the hub of noise pollution. Starting from London to Tokyo, New York to Moscow City, every busy city in the world generates a great level of noise pollution. Most of these cities have the level of noise surpassing the limit of 80 decibel. For example, in Moscow City the level of noise at metro stations during daytime can reach up to 110 decibels. Mikhail Serov who is a specialist with an independent ecological inspection agency states that "a person exposed to such a noise for a long time may grow deaf. That’s why nearly all the engineers of metro locomotives suffer from hearing impairments" (Nauki, 2006). According to a report published by Columbia University in New York, the noise generated by subway cars in New York is so loud that merely spending 30 minutes every day in this mode of transportation exposes one to the risk of hearing loss. Some of the cities which have been labelled as the noisiest cities of the world by WHO include Tokyo, Nagasiki, Japan, Argentina, Buenos Aires, Paris, Madrid and Bogota in Columbia (Hear-it AISBL, 2008). In all these cities, transportation systems like cars, aircrafts, and trains contribute to the maximum level of noise pollution. Other sources of noise include industries, construction sites, night clubs and bars.
Noise Color/ Texture and Its Effect
There are different types of noise. Depending on the property of noise the effect on humans vary significantly. For example, different colors of noise will have significant different impact on human ear and will create different texture to human eye. Types of noises are often coded by the names of colors. White noise is the most common type of noise and by definition it is that noise which remains constant within any equal interval of time. White noise has a flat frequency spectrum and has equal power (Rane Corporation, 2014). If white noise increases beyond a limit in a city then it can cause serious health issues. Increasing of white noise means that the ear is getting affected by highly powerful noise all the time. There is no respite for the hearing organ from the high level of sound. For example, the white noise in the subway stations in New York is around 60 decibel at a minimum. This means if a person is standing in a metro station for an hour then that person’s ear is constantly being hammered by a white noise of that power. Thus white noise may lead a person to hearing loss, depression, anxiety and tremendous headache if he is exposed to that for a long time.
Pink noise is a linear noise function in logarithmic space. Pink noise has more power in lower frequencies and as the frequency increases the power density decreases. The noise is inversely proportional to the frequency (Rane Corporation, 2014). Pink Noises are created by slow moving automobiles mostly in a city condition. The noise from a vehicle is highest when it is moving at a slower speed but with high speed the overall noise density generated from the tires decreases. Pink noise is even more harmful than white noise. An increase in white noise can easily be detected and government can take necessary action against that. However, detection of pink noise is not easy. Pink noise created at lower frequencies can seriously damage the hearing or can cause mental problems. For example, if a person is exposed to the sound of fire crackers hours after hours then he may feel dizzy and nauseous. Pink noise does exactly that to a person. The average speed of vehicles in big cities is low causing pink noise and further the sound of big constructions causes pink noise in the city to go up. Brown noise, also known as Brownian noise, is the type of noise which decreases in power density with increasing frequency (Rane Corporation, 2014). Brown noise is very similar to pink noise causing the same type of physical and mental damages. Grey noise is similar to white noise and is perceived as equal power noise across all spectrums by human ear. For any city, it is extremely important to keep grey and white noise within control limits. If white and grey noise increase in a city then it becomes very difficult for the city dwellers to cope with the constant high level of sound pollution. It can create mental fatigue, depression, anxiety and headache. In the long run city dwellers apart from developing physical problems may also develop multiple mental illnesses. In high sound pollution scenarios it is often observed that people develop more psychological problems.
Effect of Noise Pollution on Mental Health
For long noise pollution was only associated with the risk of hearing loss, but several studies have revealed that noise pollution causes an array of other health hazards as well including stress, hypertension, insomnia, headaches, cardiovascular disease and even aggression. Noise pollution also negatively impacts the mental health of people adding to their anxiety. The psychological effect of noise pollution includes nervousness, emotional instability, mood changes, neurosis, argumentativeness, nausea, headache, hysteria, anxiety, stress, sexual impotence, depression and psychosis.
- Heightened Level of Anxiety
Continuous exposure to noise pollution increases the level of annoyance in people increasing their blood pressure and anxiety level. People staying in noisy environments are far more likely to suffer from social anxiety than people staying in noise free environments. In order to study whether noise pollution has any connection with anxiety, a group of researchers performed a study on rats to see how noise pollution can attribute to anxiety. In their study, the male Wistar rats were divided into two groups; control groups and groups exposed to noise pollution for one or two hours every day. With the help of elevated plus maze, the anxiety level of the rats was measured. Using ANOVA, the data gathered from the test was analyzed statistically and compared between the groups. The results revealed that the rats exposed to noise pollution for two hours a day showed an increased level of anxiety than the control rats (Tavakoli, Ahmadi and Tavakoli, 2013). Noise pollution increases the level of stress hormones like epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol, leading to an increased level of anxiety. The results of the same study also showed that when the degree of noise pollution was decreased, the stress hormones especially norepinephrine decreased considerably leading to a reduced anxiety level.
- Sleep Disturbance and Depression
Sound sleep is a prerequisite for healthy physiological as well as mental functioning in people, but noise pollution increasingly interferes with one's sleep. Chronic disturbance of sleep caused by sound pollution can result in mood changes, poor performance and even depression. Sleep disturbances include insomnia or difficulty in falling asleep, waking too early, frequent awakenings at night and a reduction in REM sleep (Goines and Hagler, 2007). Noise pollution during sleep, apart from sleep disturbance, also causes heightened blood pressure and heart rate, changes in respiration, increased body movement and cardiac arrhythmias. Several studies have revealed that continuous disturbance in sleep can trigger depression in many people. According to Prashant Gajwani, a practicing medical professor and vice chairman at the University of Texas Medical School, "Lack of sleep for a long enough time can cause depression" (EHM, 2013).
- Poor Task Performance and Cognitive Development
Noise pollution interferes with the normal activity of completing tasks in school or at the workplace. Continuous noise by disrupting one's attention and adding to the level of annoyance increases the number of errors during task and decreases motivation. Problem solving aptitude, memory and concentration on reading are greatly affected by noise pollution, resulting in incomplete tasks or poor performance. Continuous exposure to noise can lead to a continuum of poor performance in tasks, leading to an arousal of stress hormones and increased blood pressure (Goines and Hagler, 2007). Children staying in noisy areas are frequently found to be poor in academic achievement. The feeling of helplessness and consequent demotivation harms the emotional development of children. Furthermore, their cognitive development gets affected if their homes and schools are located nearby the source of noise like airports and highways.
- Annoyance and Aggression
Annoyance or irritation has been defined as a bitter feeling of displeasure associated with something that adversely affects an individual. Noise accompanied by low frequency components and vibration increases the level of annoyance considerably (Goines and Hagler, 2007). Noise not only causes annoyance, it also triggers a whole gamut of emotional reactions including frustration, anger, agitation, dissatisfaction, disappointment, depression, helplessness, exhaustion and anxiety. When the victim of noise pollution is unable to control the noise, these emotional reactions intensify. Continuous noise exposure brings about certain social and behavioral changes in people. People in order to evade noise pollution shut their windows and doors , avoid the use of balconies, yards and patios and even increase the volume of television and radios to keep out the loud noise outside. When the noise pollution is beyond their control, they develop a feeling of helplessness and frustration resulting in unfriendliness, aggressiveness and lower level of altruistic behavior. Many people because of being of continuous stay in noisy environment fall into a spell of depression.
Several studies conducted by social psychologists and researchers have shown that though noise does not increase aggression on its own but may trigger an aggressive response from someone already annoyed and angry over something. A study made by Geen and O’Neil in 1975 revealed that noise pollution elicited an aggressive response from participants who were already annoyed and disturbed over watching a violent film (Sammons). In another study conducted by Donnerstein and Wilson, the result showed that the participants displayed greater amount of aggression when they were exposed to noise they were unable to control. On the other hand, participants who were exposed to lower level of noise and who could control the noise showed lesser amount of aggression or no aggression at all (Sammons). There have been several reports of murder and dispute reported in both USA and UK in which the perpetrator losing his calm over the noisy neighbor resorted to violence. For instance, in 2010 in Torrance, California, the neighbor living upstairs in an apartment fatally shot the downstairs neighbor over a dispute created by loud music (Altman, 2010).
Legislation on Noise Pollution in USA and UK
Sound pollution was for long period of time neglected by legislators. It was not considered as deadly as other forms of pollution like air pollution. However, during 1960s in USA a movement took place to form a legislation to prevent unabated increase in sound pollution. In 1972 the act called “Noise Control Act” was passed (EPA, 2012). This law tried to restrict the amount of noise, source of noise and duration of noise. This law also specified the time of the day the restrictions are applicable as well. Although this law came into effect after the sound pollution laws of Japan and United Kingdom but was much more comprehensive than that of Japan and UK. This law not only specified the noise limits on the amount of noise, sources, duration and time of the day but also encouraged the states and cities to take noise pollution into consideration while planning and zoning areas in the city (TEEI). However, those initial movements to curb noise pollution slowed down during 1980s and noise from automobiles and other sources kept on escalating in the following decades. During this time the federal government also failed to come up with regulations for aircraft noise and automobile noise. However, despite the lack of federal initiative some states like California continued to work and establish a “Noise Element General Plan” in late 1980s (EPA, 2012). As aircraft noise and road noise shared majority of the noise emissions, finally in 1990s the US government was convinced that better regulations were required to reduce those noises. NEPA and NCA helped build the reduced noise transportation system. In 1990s with the help of government funding and independent research the federal as well as the state government of USA came up with concrete strategies to reduce sound pollution. Road textures were defined to reduce noise issuing from the automobiles. Aircraft design specifications were reviewed to reduce noise pollution. Even building codes were defined during the construction of buildings or remodeling of buildings to reduce noise significantly. However, still there are many areas yet to be addressed.
United Kingdom came out with the first set of sound pollution legislation in 1960s. It was the second nation after Japan to do so. However, the initial act was very rudimentary covering only very few areas. In 1990 the act was enhanced to include legislation on limits of noise from vehicles, equipment and machinery in the streets. This also specified the maximum noise that can be created by a company. In 1993 the noise legislation provided local authority with the power to serve abatement notices when it realized that noise pollution was causing health problems (Environment Agency, 2013). In 1996 further legislations came in which talked about the noise limits in the residential areas and at night. This act also specified what should be the maximum noise limit in a home. After 1996 many amendments were added to the existing laws to make them more robust.
Conclusion
Sound pollution is often not seriously taken as other types of pollution. Air pollution which often takes the limelight among all the different types of pollution may not be as lethal as sound pollution in some of the big cities. Sound pollution slowly kills. It not only creates physical problems like hearing loss and brain problems but also attributes to serious mental ailments like aggression, depression, anxiety and poor cognitive development. In big cities the white and grey noises have become a great problem. High levels of white and grey noises are affecting millions of people in the cities across the world. To reduce the unabated increase in noise in cities many counties have come up with different legislations. USA and UK were one of the pioneers in sound pollution legislations. Although not seriously taken initially by the governments of both the nations, in last two decades both the countries have come up with very robust sound pollution prevention framework at national and local level.
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