Noise

World Alzheimer's Day- Constant exposure to noise pollution may increase the risk of dementia caused due to Alzheimer's disease while music could have positive impact, say doctors. According to a recent study published in international health journals around the world, constant exposure to traffic noise increases the risk of dementia among aged population. Each year, September 21 is commemorated as the World Alzheimer's Day, and Alzheimer's disease has been found to be the commonest cause of dementia. Doctors say with India fast racing towards becoming the most populated country in the world, and with improved healthcare delivery mechanism, aged population is on the rise in the country. This section of the society is at the risk of developing age-related complications like dementia, which is often considered a serious mental problem caused by brain disease or injury, that affects the ability to think, remember and behave normally. Commenting on the problem, Sritheja Reddy, Consultant Neurologist, Gleneagles Global Hospital believes that music usually has a soothing effect on individuals of all ages, but loud and persistent noise can cause mental disturbance, and could even trigger experiences of ill being among those people who are suffering from dementia or Alzheimer's related problems. "Cities are usually bustling with great activity during the day times and in the nights, but this could increase exposure to excessive noise, that can lead to short term impairments in cognitive function, particularly with respect to the ability to focus and remember. And the most important aspect here is that chronic exposure to noise pollution may increase the risk for dementia," the doctor said. Abhinay M. Huchche, Consultant Neurologist, SLG Hospitals says that musical sounds could have a positive impact on people suffering from dementia, caused due to Alzheimer's disease." Listening to or singing songs can provide emotional and behavioral benefits for people with Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia. Musical memories are often preserved in Alzheimer's disease because key brain areas linked to musical memory are relatively undamaged by the disease," he added. Changala Praveen, Consultant - Neurophysician, Aware Gleneagles Global Hospital pointed out that ageing patients require extra attention, and those impacted by dementia require proper evaluation and management of the disease through a multidisciplinary approach. "Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause for dementia, and there are multiple reasons for aged population developing this problem. Constant exposure to loud and unsavoury sounds like traffic noise is also a major cause for the older people to develop dementia. People who have aged family members in the house must ensure the elderly are protected from loud noises, and this is the best solution to arrest complexities," he said. Having exposure to high levels of noise during the night is especially concerning, as sleep is a critical period for mental and cognitive restoration. Fragmented sleep resulting from noise disturbance is associated with increased oxidative stress causes alterations in the immune system and increased systemic inflammation. Read More► Are young Indians at a higher risk of heart disease?

Wellington, July 22 (IANS) A joint study by scientists from New Zealand and Canada showed that silence is golden for marine life as Covid-19 lockdown slowed global shipping and reduced ocean noise.As New Zealand's first Covid-19 lockdown began on March 26, 2020, the country's busiest coastal waterway, the Hauraki Gulf, became devoid of almost all non-essential vessels and noise levels plunged, the Xinhua news agency reported."That first lockdown really did give us an unprecedented opportunity to measure or quantify the effects of human activity on marine life," said University of Auckland marine scientist Associate Professor Craig Radford. "So we decided to take a look at the response of our marine organisms in this new, relatively calm world."Noise pollution is known to effect marine life which uses sound to communicate a variety of life-critical behaviours such as predator alarms or mate selection. Rising underwater sound has become a significant concern to marine scientists who have evidence of lethal and sub-lethal effects on marine life.In this study, acoustic data were collected between February 2020 and May 2020 using seafloor mounted acoustic recording stations at five sites in the Hauraki Gulf. Recorders captured two minutes of sound every 10 minutes which equated to six samples per hour or 144 samples a day. The samples were then split into pre-lockdown and during lockdown.Two species commonly found in the Gulf were the focus of this study, bottlenose dolphins and bigeyes fish. Both maintain social groups via acoustic communication and have well-documented acoustic source levels and hearing thresholds enabling scientists to accurately calculate their communication range.Communication range is the maximum distance from a vocalising animal at which a second animal of the same species can detect sound. Scientists liken it to what happens at a human cocktail party: the more people in the room, the more difficult it is to hear a nearby companion and vice-versa.Without small boats, the gulf became much quieter at all five acoustic monitoring sites, particularly at frequencies below 1 kHz. Median sound pressure levels were down by 8 decibels and 10 decibels on the first day and vessel noise levels dropped by almost half, before dropping even further - to 8 per cent of normal levels.The study showed overall that the ability of dolphins and bigeyes to clearly hear each other more than doubled during lockdown."There is a growing body of evidence that shows vessel noise is highly invasive and audible to nearly all marine mammals and fishes," Associate Professor Radford said. "And the sheer number of recreational vessels in normal times is not offset by the fact they are often only present for short periods of time.""Research into noise generated by smaller boats has been somewhat neglected because of the larger scale noise generated by ships but key data from this study provides strong evidence that small vessels, where there are enough of them, directly influence sound levels and are definitely having an impact."The research is published in Global Change Biology and was done in collaboration with Dr Matthew Pine from Canada's University of Victoria. --IANSint/rs

London - Researchers have revealed that tinnitus, a common condition that causes the perception of noise in the ear and head, is being exacerbated by Covid-19 -- as well as the measures taken to stop its spread. The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Public Health, involved 3,103 participants from 48 countries, with the vast majority coming from the UK and the US. "We found that 40 per cent of those displaying symptoms of Covid-19 simultaneously experience a worsening of their tinnitus," said study authors from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) in the UK. Although the study focused on people with pre-existing tinnitus, a small number of participants also reported that their condition was initially triggered by developing Covid-19 symptoms, suggesting that tinnitus could be a 'long Covid' symptom in some cases. The study also found that a large proportion of people believe their tinnitus is being made worse by social distancing measures introduced to help control the spread of the virus. These measures have led to significant changes to work and lifestyle routines. UK respondents reported this to be a greater issue compared to people from other countries, with 46 per cent of UK respondents saying that lifestyle changes had negatively impacted their tinnitus compared to 29 per cent in North America. Females and the under-50s found tinnitus significantly more bothersome during the pandemic. The study noted that as well as increasing the severity of tinnitus symptoms, the Covid-19 pandemic has also made it more difficult for people to access healthcare support for the condition. This could further increase emotional distress and worsen tinnitus symptoms, creating a vicious cycle. The findings highlight the complexities associated with experiencing tinnitus and how both internal factors, such as increased anxiety and feelings of loneliness, and external factors, such as changes to daily routines, can have a significant effect on the condition. "Some of the changes brought about by Covid-19 appear to have had a negative impact on the lives of people with tinnitus and participants in this study reported that Covid-19 symptoms are worsening or, in some cases, even initiating tinnitus and hearing loss," the researchers wrote. "This is something that needs to be closely examined by both clinical and support services," they noted. (IANS)

London - Whether it is loud machinery at work, a busy freeway, a nearby airport or loud music, many people are exposed to high levels of noise, say researchers, adding that exposure to loud noise is not only annoying but also bad for your health. Large studies have linked noise exposure to various health problems in people. Now, two new mouse studies provide new insight into how this type of noise exposure can lead to high blood pressure and cancer-related DNA damage. "Our new data provide additional mechanistic insights into these adverse health effects, especially high blood pressure and potentially cancer development, both leading causes of global death," said study researcher Matthias Oelze from the University Medical Centre of Mainz in Germany. Published in The FASEB Journal, the research found that healthy mice exposed to four days of aircraft noise were more likely to develop high blood pressure. For mice with pre-established high blood pressure, this noise exposure aggravated heart damage because of a synergistic increase of oxidative stress and inflammation in the cardiovascular and neuronal systems. In another study, the researchers observed that the same noise exposure induced oxidative DNA damage in mice. This damage led to a highly mutagenic DNA lesion that was previously associated with the development of cancer in other settings. They are currently conducting several studies on the health effects of noise, including interactions of pre-established cardiovascular diseases with noise as well as behavioural effects of noise exposure in mice. "These new findings, together with our other work on noise-associated cardiovascular effects, could lead to a better understanding of how noise influences health," said Oelze. "This information could help inform policies and regulations that better protect people against diseases related to noise exposure," Oelze noted.(Agency)