Similar Effects Noted From Ground Traffic, Snoring

If you're fighting the NIMBYs to save your local airport -- or heaven forbid, extend a runway to accommodate business jets -- don't let your neighbors get hold of a copy of Wednesday's Washington Post.

The paper quotes a HealthDay News report that aircraft noise can increase your blood pressure while you're sleeping, even if it's not loud enough to wake you up.

A report in the February issue of the European Heart Journal cited a study of 140 people living near London's Heathrow Airport, which found noise louder than 35 decibels raised blood pressure an average of 6.2 over 7.4. Those figures got worse as the noise grew louder.

"We know that noise from air traffic can be a source of irritation, but our research shows that it can also be damaging for people's health, which is particularly significant in light of plans to expand international airports," said Dr. Lars Jarup, from the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at Imperial College London, and co-author of the report.

"Nighttime aircraft noise can affect your blood pressure instantly and increase the risk of hypertension. It is clear to me that measures need to be taken to reduce noise levels from aircraft, in particular during nighttime, in order to protect the health of people living near airports," Jarup said.

The report does note increased noise from ground traffic, or even from someone snoring nearby, can cause a similar elevation in blood pressure -- but the study focuses on the effects of airport noise. Read into that what you will.

Dr. Harlan M. Krumholz, a professor of medicine at the Yale University School of Medicine, cautioned more study is needed before concluding there's a direct health risk resulting from the elevated blood pressure.

What we want to know, is can you get used to it? After all, Finfrock swears he used to sleep better when he lived under an approach path to Addison Airport, than now that he's 15 miles from the nearest airfield...

FMI: http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/