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Series / Report no.
Open Access
Type
Article
Meetings and Proceedings
Meetings and Proceedings
Language
en
Date
2024-11-08
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Title
Noise and health in children (in a broader environmental context)
Translated Title
Published in
In: Lyons, S (ed.), Acoustics 2024 Acoustics in the Sun : Proceedings of theAnnual Conference of the Australian Acoustical Society, 2024 (ISBN 978-0-646-70515-6)
Abstract
- Environmental noise is a growing public health problem in a rapidly urbanising world. Foetuses and neonates, children and adolescents can be considered as sensitive to noise because of their continuous physical
and cognitive development. Early exposures might have serious effects later on in life and the concept of life course exposure helps to study the impact of the physical (e.g., acoustic) and social environment on cognitive development and health in young people over time. Life course can be subdivided in different life phases and usually these are based on age and developmental stages. In some life phases people are more susceptible for environmental health effects than in others -so called sensitive periods. It is also possible that health effects of a sensitive period are co- affected by factors during later phases. In that case we speak of a domino effect. Children thus form an important group where environmental quality is concerned and early prevention of diverse environmental effects can have large health benefits also later on in life. Despite of this, children and adolescents have systematically been understudied in the field of environmental epidemiology and the noise field. This paper summarizes the existing knowledge on how children's short and long term health and cognitive development are affected by noise. Some mechanisms are discussed, placing noise in the broader environmental context. Based on this overview we try to convey the message that the noise environments children grow up in have serious long term effects on their learning and health. Intervention at an early age could benefit society as a whole by enhancing health and education outcomes, thus also addressing the contextual and root causes of social inequalities.