Roaring at night: aircraft noise damages the blood vessels
All content is checked by medical journalists.MunichAircraft noise not only robs the residents of the last nerve, but is also bad for their health. The nocturnal noise damages the blood vessels and dramatically affects sleep, scientists from Mainz report in their aircraft noise study. "It shows very specifically how and at what sound levels vascular damage occurs," explains Prof. Thomas Münzel, cardiologist at the Mainz University Hospital.
Thunder in the night
The researchers examined 75 healthy men who were on average 26 years old and had no prior cardiovascular system damage. In their sleep they were exposed to three different noise scenarios. Night flights with an average noise level of 60 decibels were simulated in the test subjects' homes. Once there were 30 night flights, once 60 and a noise-free night scenario for control.
The scientists found that night flight noise increased the level of the stress hormone adrenaline in the test subjects. In addition, the vascular function deteriorated significantly; it was measured with high-resolution ultrasound equipment. The worse the flight noises, the more the arteries' ability to expand decreased. So-called endothelial dysfunction developed, a functional disorder of the vascular lining. “We know that aircraft noise can trigger high blood pressure, heart attacks and even strokes. The exact mechanisms that lead to these cardiovascular diseases were not yet known, ”says Münzel, the head of the study.
In addition, a sound system with 30 overflights, followed by a night with 60 overflights, resulted in a significantly poorer vascular function. "That means that if you do several sound reinforcements you don't get used to the aircraft noise, but rather the extent of the vascular damage increases," adds Münzel. However, this must first be checked in further studies.
Vitamin C helps
The researchers came across another connection: It is remarkable that the vascular damage caused by noise can be corrected with vitamin C, ”says the heart specialist. This suggests that many free radicals are formed in the vessels as a result of the noise, which have a negative impact on the vascular function. The researchers suspect that the deterioration in vascular function due to oxidative stress is an important mechanism for the development of noise-induced high blood pressure and its possible consequences such as heart attacks and strokes.
Nocturnal aircraft noise is to be assessed as an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. The noise pollution of the population should therefore be kept as low as possible. (in the)
Source: Münzel, T. et al .: "Effect of nighttime aircraft noise exposure on endothelial function and stress hormone release in healthy adults", European Heart Journal, July 2, 2013, doi: 10.1093 / eurheartj / eht269
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