HEALTH IMPACTS
One of the challenges of community sound issues is overcoming the various assumptions made about sound:
-
That it is the price we must pay for living in cities
-
That we adapt to it over time
-
That it is simply a nuisance and not an exposure that negatively impacts our health
However, current epidemiological studies suggest that these assumptions are not only untrue but may also be harmful. This section of our report analyzes survey responses to questions of physical, mental, and sleep and relaxation health impacts resulting from exposure to neighborhood sound. Visual, interactive maps of self-reported health and hours sleep for Greater Boston can be found HERE.
In a nutshell, the major responses to community noise are disturbances to sleep—trouble falling asleep and trouble staying asleep (74% and 60%, respectively). We found that individuals living in the neighborhoods of Dorchester, East Boston, and Chinatown reported even higher percentages.
Trouble concentrating and trouble relaxing were also among the highest reported negative impacts resulting from exposure to neighborhood sound.
