Nicotine is toxic, and so is noise

by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition

Photo credit: Kamaji Ogino

The HealthDay website wrote about a research study published in the European Heart Journal showing that nicotine is toxic to the heart and blood vessels regardless of how it is consumed. It doesn’t matter if the nicotine is smoked, vaped or taken via a pouch. For those like me who prefer to read the original research, here’s a link to the scientific article.

Why am I writing about nicotine in a blog about noise? The same can be said about noise, which is also bad for cardiovascular health. To my surprise, the first author of the article is noted cardiologist Thomas Münzel. Along with his research team, Münzel has conducted much of the research showing that transportation noise from vehicles, railroads and especially from aircraft is bad for the cardiovascular system. Transportation noise causes inflammation of the arterial lining. Nighttime noise disrupting sleep has especially deleterious health effects.

Noise also damages the brain and, of course, the ears, causing noise-induced hearing loss. In a presentation at the recent joint meeting of the Acoustical Society of America and the Acoustical Society of Japan, I suggested that hearing loss in old age is the cumulative result of a lifetime of excessive noise exposure.

Just as with not smoking or quitting if one already does smoke, one can protect one’s auditory health by reducing noise exposure. Reducing noise pollution will require collective action, with enough people “making noise about noise” to their elected officials until laws and regulations specify quieter aircraft, quieter vehicles with unmodified exhausts and safer rail crossings that permit a reduction in railroad horn use.

A quieter world will a better and healthier world for all.