Living near noisy traffic could increase Parkinson’s disease risk

by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition

Photo Credit:  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Euronews recently reported that people living near noisy roads might have an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease. The Euronews report is based on a paper published in JAMA Neurology. The study was done in Denmark, based on detailed information collected about each participant. Statistical adjustments were made for plantings and which side of the building someone lived on, facing the street or not.

It is not widely known that noise has both auditory disorders like hearing loss, tinnitus, and hyperacusis, and non-auditory health effects like cardiovascular disease. Road traffic noise is correlated, probably causally, with a wide variety of other health conditions, from obesity to diabetes to infertility to cognitive impairment and mental health issues. Now Parkison’s can be added to that list.

Noise damages not only the delicate structures of the inner ear, but also brain circuits. Road traffic noise can be reduced at the source by quieter electric vehicles, enforcement of existing laws against illegally modified exhausts, trees between roads and housing, and quieter combinations of road surfaces and tire compositions.

Please join us in our efforts to fight noise. Become a member.

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