The excessive noise caused by end-of-year celebrations and parties worries experts who investigate the impacts of noise on health. According to them, even occasional exposure can cause damage, especially to the auditory system, causing tinnitus or hearing loss.
To Agência Brasil, the professor of the speech therapy course at Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Karla Vasconcelos, explains that noise pollution is the result of high levels of sound intensity in different environments, such as gyms, traffic, factories, bars, industries and shows. According to the researcher, even occasional exposure can cause damage.
“People, especially at this time of year, associate fun with loud music, and don’t realize that, in addition to disturbing other people’s peace of mind, they can harm their own health, especially their hearing. It is common for tinnitus, most often noticed after a period of exposure, to remain”, he explains.
“Living with the perception of constant noise is not pleasant and can interfere with professional and social routine, causing other demands such as those related to mental health.”
Vasconcelos argues that noise pollution needs to be understood as a public health issue because it causes harm that goes beyond hearing loss, such as irritability, sleep disorders, metabolic, cardiovascular and digestive diseases.
“The stress caused by exposure to high sound intensity disturbs peace of mind and is an important symptom of this exposure. It is common to hear tragic news caused by the disorder caused by excessive sound intensity”, he adds.
For the coordinator of the Environmental Acoustics Committee of the Brazilian Association for Acoustic Quality (ProAcústica), Rafael Andrade, noise pollution can be understood as “sound emissions that cause environmental imbalance and pose risks to health and well-being”.
“When we deal with noise pollution, we have a pollutant that does not leave visible marks on the environment, which causes the issue to be placed in a secondary place, seen as less urgent and serious”, he highlights. “This negligence in relation to noise pollution reflects a lack of awareness on the subject, as it does not consider various consequences of prolonged exposure to noise.”
Impacts
“Usually, we relate the damage to health caused by noise with hearing loss, but it is important to highlight that long before these losses occur, we have already observed several negative consequences of prolonged exposure to noise, which has both physiological and psychological impacts”, highlights Andrade.
Difficulty hearing due to excessive noise is known as Hearing Loss Induced by High Sound Pressure Levels (PAINPSE).
“Exposure to noise increases stress levels, resulting in the release of hormones such as cortisol. From then on, a chain reaction can be observed, since high levels of cortisol in the body can lead to an increase in blood pressure and the risk of developing other cardiovascular problems, such as arrhythmias and heart attacks”, says the coordinator.
From a psychological point of view, Andrade recalls that this situation leads to increased irritability and anxiety disorders, as well as damage to memory and concentration. Exposure to intense noise is harmful, especially for school-age children, as it compromises learning and cognitive development. There are also impacts on sleep health, with fragmentation of the rest period and feelings of fatigue.
Noise levels
The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that noise levels above 75 decibels (dB) are harmful to human hearing. Brazilian legislation determines that the maximum level of noise that a worker can be exposed to over the course of an 8-hour day is 80 decibels. The maximum noise exposure level varies according to the exposure time, and the higher the sound intensity, the lower the exposure should be.
A table published by the University of São Paulo (USP) recommends that for a noise level of 85 decibels, the maximum allowable exposure is 8 hours per day. For an exposure of 90 decibels, 4 hours; for 95 decibels, 2 hours; for 100 decibels, 1 hour; for 105 decibels, 30 minutes and for 110 decibels, 15 minutes. “Fireworks and parties or shows usually exceed 120 dB”, warns the UFF professor.
“Especially, during the end of the year, celebrations and fireworks are the main sources of exposure to environmental noise. Any high-intensity sound can cause damage to the structures responsible for decoding mechanical energy into electrical stimuli that are part of the auditory system, the hair cells. Once damaged, they do not regenerate and therefore the damage, even if minimal, will be permanent”, says Vasconcelos.
In Brazil, 17.3 million people aged 2 years or over (8.4% of this population) have some of the deficiencies assessed by the 2019 National Health Survey (PNS). Prepared by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), the study identified that 6.9 million (3.4%) have visual impairment, 2.5 million (1.2%) mental impairment and 2.3 million (1.1%) hearing impairment.
According to the study, hearing loss occurs when a person has great difficulty or is unable to hear at all. This condition can be caused by several factors, one of which is repeated exposure for long periods to sounds above 85 decibels.
Recommendations
To preserve hearing health, the coordinator of the ProAcústica Environmental Acoustics Committee suggests reducing the volume of headphones and using ear protectors when attending noisy places, such as parties with loud music. Protectors, or plugs, reduce the sound levels that reach the auditory system.
“There are protectors available on the market for music environments, which maintain sound quality, an interesting option for those who like going to shows. If you are having a party at home, avoid loud music, loud music results in greater effort to talk, which can cause damage to the voice, as well as an increase in the noise generated, leading to discomfort with the neighborhood. Avoid sleeping with television or music, these constant noises also affect the quality of sleep, which can increase the feeling of tiredness and irritability.”
Andrade also draws attention to urban noise pollution and the noise generated by vehicles. The coordinator recommends installing noise-reducing windows in houses and apartments. “However, these solutions are not accessible to the majority of the population. We must always demand public authorities to manage traffic in cities with a view to improving urban acoustic space”, he argues.
What the law says
At the federal level, article 42 of the Criminal Misdemeanors Law of 1941 says that disturbing someone while carrying out their work or “other people’s peace” with “shouting or loud noise; carrying out an uncomfortable or noisy profession, in violation of legal requirements; abusing sound instruments or acoustic signals; provoking or not seeking to prevent noise produced by an animal he is in custody” can spend 15 days to three months in prison.
Also at the federal level, the Environmental Crimes Law guarantees punishment of one to four years for anyone who “causes pollution of any nature” at levels that could harm human health. “To reduce the impacts of noise exposure, the main thing is that the population is educated and made aware of the issue. This way, it will be possible for regulations to be respected”, says Vasconcelos.
Ministry of Health
In a note, the Ministry of Health warns that listening to loud sounds for long periods of time can result in temporary or permanent hearing loss or a sensation of ringing in the ears. According to the ministry, data released by the WHO indicates that more than 1 billion people, aged between 12 and 35, are at risk of losing their hearing due to prolonged and excessive exposure to loud music and other recreational sounds.
According to the ministry, the global standard for safe hearing in places and events highlights six recommendations: maximum sound level of 100 decibels; monitoring and recording sound levels using calibrated equipment by designated personnel; optimize venue acoustics and sound systems to ensure pleasant quality and safe listening; make personal hearing protection available to the public, including instructions for use; access to quiet areas for people to rest their ears and reduce the risk of hearing damage and training and information for workers.
The ministry also informs that the Unified Health System (SUS) offers comprehensive and free hearing health care, with actions ranging from health promotion and prevention of hearing loss, to early identification through ear testing. , up to diagnosis in specialized services and auditory rehabilitation (hearing aids and specialized therapies).
*Intern under the supervision of Mariana Tokarnia
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This content was originally published in Excessive noise during the holidays can cause hearing loss on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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