Road noise is associated with an increased risk of hypertension, according to research published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, JACC: Advances. These findings make the need for public health measures to reduce noise exposure imperative.

Previous studies have shown a link between noisy road traffic and an increased risk of high blood pressure, but it was unclear whether noise or air pollution played a bigger role. New research shows that exposure to road traffic noise can increase the risk of high blood pressure.

For the research, the scientists used data from the British biomedical database Biobank UK, which looks at health outcomes over time. They analyzed data on more than 240,000 people aged 40-69 who started without hypertension. They estimated road traffic noise based on residential address and a European modeling tool, the Common Noise Assessment Method. Using an average of 8.1 years of follow-up data, they looked at how many people developed hypertension.

Not only did they find that people who lived near road traffic noise were more likely to develop high blood pressure, but they also found that the risk increased with the noise level. These associations held even when the researchers included exposure to fine particles and nitrogen dioxide. However, people who had high exposure to both traffic noise and air pollution had the highest risk of hypertension, indicating that air pollution also plays a role.

The researchers note that public health policy, such as establishing and enforcing stricter noise guidelines, improving road conditions and investing in quieter vehicles, can mitigate the negative effects of road traffic noise.