Health Impacts of Noise Pollution

For city-dwellers, noisy nights come with the territory. Living in crowded urban areas can make it difficult to drown out the sounds of cars, sirens and late-night partygoers. It was a problem that Megan Hiles, MD, FACP, internal medicine physician and director of the Wellness and Prevention Clinics at National Jewish Health, has personally experience while living in Denver. The Mile High City has become increasingly dense over the past few years. “A lot of people just dismiss noise pollution as an annoyance, especially in the city where it’s such an everyday part of life,” said Dr. Hiles. “But research shows that there can be serious health risks when you’re sleeping in a consistently noisy environment. I started thinking about what we can do to minimize these risks.”

According to Dr. Hiles, the health risks of nighttime noise pollution involve everything from increased stress to anxiety, depression and heart problems. “I think cardiovascular health is one of the most prominent issues we see with noise pollution,” said Dr. Hiles. “Noise exposure leads to sleep disturbance, which leads to sympathetic nervous system activation and a hormonal stress response. This response can increase the risk for cardiovascular events over time.”

Researchers have known about the relationship between nighttime noise pollution and health problems for some time. However, the increasing growth of cities (Opens in a new window) in the U.S. has been making this a more relevant issue for doctors and patients.

How Loud Is Too Loud?

Research suggests that less than about 30 or 40 decibels is best for a good night’s sleep. To put that into perspective, the sound of light rain is about 40 decibels. Normal conversation takes place at about 60 decibels.

However, according to Dr. Hiles, there’s a psychological element at work too. Some people are more likely to tolerate noise during sleep than others. You might think of the classic scene from the movie My Cousin Vinny, where Joe Pesci’s city slicker character actually sleeps better in a noisy prison cell than he does the countryside. This detail is exaggerated for comedic effect, but the impact of noise pollution can differ from person to person. “People have different levels of sensitivity,” said Dr. Hiles. “If it bothers you more, you're going to have that greater stress response to it. And then that's greater activation of that sympathetic nervous system, which leads to all those health consequences.”

What Can We Do?

Solutions for nighttime noise pollution are being explored from different angles. From a public health perspective, researchers are examining how lower speed limits can limit noise. This has already been investigated in Europe (Opens in a new window). Additionally, by transitioning away from gas-powered vehicles, we can also reduce noise in urban environments. On the individual level, there are some practical ways you can create natural sound barriers in your home. These include:

• Using heavy curtains to block light and sound
• Decorating your home with soft materials that absorb sound, such as rugs
• Adding bookshelves, since books can also absorb sound

And if you need to take more drastic action, there are even soundproof wallpapers you can purchase to help alleviate your noise problem. “The most important thing is being aware that noise plays a role in your health. Then you can take steps to help fix the issue,” said Dr. Hiles.

The Mission to Provide More Personalized Medicine

As with noise pollution and its downstream health impacts, Dr. Hiles remains focused on prevention. In 2024, she led the opening of the National Jewish Health Wellness and Prevention Clinics, which features new programs such as Concierge Medicine.

Concierge Medicine is a membership-based program that offers primary care services that are designed to promote health and wellness.

“I have always been passionate about primary care, about, preventing illness and intervening before things become a problem,” said Dr. Hiles. “So I was drawn to the opportunity to build a new program, shaping what an ideal primary care experience would look like for patients.

“By taking the National Jewish Health existing care model of extensive patient-physician interaction and implementing it in a primary care environment, we believe we can find new methods of care delivery that work better for patients and physicians,” said Dr. Hiles. “When we find better ways to deliver care in a concierge practice, we can spread best practices to our larger institutions and to primary care nationally.”