Noise Effect
What does noise affect?
- Noise Effects & Mitigation
- How does Noise affect People?
- How does Noise affect Domestic Animals and Wildlife?
- Other Noise Related Effects
- References
A community's "health" refers to the total psychological and physiological well-being of its members. The term "public health" considers the common interests of society as a whole. In other words, when looking at how noise might affect people, we must consider the long-term, cumulative effects on the whole population, not just individuals.
Background
Your reaction to a particular noise environment is very complex. This is particularly true when we try to evaluate the potential health effects of exposure to aircraft noise. This is due to:
- The irregular nature and character of aircraft noise
- Noise levels fluctuate significantly from high to low over time
- The complex psychological and physiological reaction of people to the actual noise
- People's attitudes toward the source of the noise
In addition, short-term community reaction can be different than the long-term community reaction. This further complicates the issue.
The scientific-medical community has divided the noise effects on people into two general categories of responses:
The scientific-medical community has divided the noise effects on people into two general categories of responses:
- Psychological Effects
- These are people's psychological reaction to their noise environment and its interference with their daily activities. For example, noise can make it hard to hear, concentrate, and sleep. This may affect work and school performance.
- Physiological Effects
- These are the effects on the human body's systems. For example, noise-induced hearing loss. It has also been suggested that cardiovascular disease might be affected by environmental noise.
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