Negative impact of noise and noise sensitivity on mental health in childhood

Association Between Residential Exposure to Road Traffic Noise and Psychological Health in Preschool Children

Environmental noise pollution is one of the biggest concerns and the most important challenges in urban areas. Evidence from epidemiological studies shows that acoustic pollution can impact human health, and the effects may be stronger in susceptible and sensitive individuals. The objective of the study was to determine the individual exposure to road transport noise for preschool children in the residential environment and to assess its impact on children's psychological health. This is the first representative large-scale noise impact study in Lithuania aimed at the psychological health of children. A total of 1457 parent-child pairs were involved in the study. Residential exposure to environmental noise caused by road transport in Kaunas agglomeration, Lithuania was determined by applying geographic information systems and strategic noise mapping. A standardized Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to assess psychological health problems in children. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the association between residential exposure to environmental noise caused by road transport and children's psychological health. The results of the study showed that the risk of hyperactivity and total scale difficulties increased statistically significantly up to 77% and up to 48%, respectively, in the highest noise (Lnight ≥ 50 dB) exposure. The obtained results provide new knowledge about the relationship between road traffic noise in the residential environment and the psychological health of preschool children.

Machine learning-based health environmental-clinical risk scores in European children

BACKGROUND

Early life environmental stressors play an important role in the development of multiple chronic disorders. Previous studies that used environmental risk scores (ERS) to assess the cumulative impact of environmental exposures on health are limited by the diversity of exposures included, especially for early life determinants. We used machine learning methods to build early life exposome risk scores for three health outcomes using environmental, molecular, and clinical data.

METHODS

In this study, we analyzed data from 1622 mother-child pairs from the HELIX European birth cohorts, using over 300 environmental, 100 child peripheral, and 18 mother-child clinical markers to compute environmental-clinical risk scores (ECRS) for child behavioral difficulties, metabolic syndrome, and lung function. ECRS were computed using LASSO, Random Forest and XGBoost. XGBoost ECRS were selected to extract local feature contributions using Shapley values and derive feature importance and interactions.

RESULTS

ECRS captured 13%, 50% and 4% of the variance in mental, cardiometabolic, and respiratory health, respectively. We observed no significant differences in predictive performances between the above-mentioned methods.The most important predictive features were maternal stress, noise, and lifestyle exposures for mental health; proteome (mainly IL1B) and metabolome features for cardiometabolic health; child BMI and urine metabolites for respiratory health.

CONCLUSIONS

Besides their usefulness for epidemiological research, our risk scores show great potential to capture holistic individual level non-hereditary risk associations that can inform practitioners about actionable factors of high-risk children. As in the post-genetic era personalized prevention medicine will focus more and more on modifiable factors, we believe that such integrative approaches will be instrumental in shaping future healthcare paradigms.

Individual characteristics moderate listening effort in noisy classrooms

Comprehending the teacher's message when other students are chatting is challenging. Even though the sound environment is the same for a whole class, differences in individual performance can be observed, which might depend on a variety of personal factors and their specific interaction with the listening condition. This study was designed to explore the role of individual characteristics (reading comprehension, inhibitory control, noise sensitivity) when primary school children perform a listening comprehension task in the presence of a two-talker masker. The results indicated that this type of noise impairs children's accuracy, effort, and motivation during the task. Its specific impact depended on the level and was modulated by the child's characteristics. In particular, reading comprehension was found to support task accuracy, whereas inhibitory control moderated the effect of listening condition on the two measures of listening effort included in the study (response time and self-ratings), even though with a different pattern of association. A moderation effect of noise sensitivity on perceived listening effort was also observed. Understanding the relationship between individual characteristics and classroom sound environment has practical implications for the acoustic design of spaces promoting students' well-being, and supporting their learning performance.

The Contribution of Environmental Science to Mental Health Research: A Scoping Review

Mental health is influenced by multiple complex and interacting genetic, psychological, social, and environmental factors. As such, developing state-of-the-art mental health knowledge requires collaboration across academic disciplines, including environmental science. To assess the current contribution of environmental science to this field, a scoping review of the literature on environmental influences on mental health (including conditions of cognitive development and decline) was conducted. The review protocol was developed in consultation with experts working across mental health and environmental science. The scoping review included 202 English-language papers, published between 2010 and 2020 (prior to the COVID-19 pandemic), on environmental themes that had not already been the subject of recent systematic reviews; 26 reviews on climate change, flooding, air pollution, and urban green space were additionally considered. Studies largely focused on populations in the USA, China, or Europe and involved limited environmental science input. Environmental science research methods are primarily focused on quantitative approaches utilising secondary datasets or field data. Mental health measurement was dominated by the use of self-report psychometric scales. Measures of environmental states or exposures were often lacking in specificity (e.g., limited to the presence or absence of an environmental state). Based on the scoping review findings and our synthesis of the recent reviews, a research agenda for environmental science's future contribution to mental health scholarship is set out. This includes recommendations to expand the geographical scope and broaden the representation of different environmental science areas, improve measurement of environmental exposure, prioritise experimental and longitudinal research designs, and giving greater consideration to variation between and within communities and the mediating pathways by which environment influences mental health. There is also considerable opportunity to increase interdisciplinarity within the field via the integration of conceptual models, the inclusion of mixed methods and qualitative approaches, as well as further consideration of the socio-political context and the environmental states that can help support good mental health. The findings were used to propose a conceptual model to parse contributions and connections between environmental science and mental health to inform future studies.

Perceived Occupational Noise Exposure and Depression in Young Finnish Adults

We investigated the association between perceived occupational noise exposure and depressive symptoms in young Finnish adults and whether noise sensitivity moderates this association. This study was based on an ongoing longitudinal twin study. We included those who had been working daily (n = 521) or weekly (n = 245) during the past 12 months (mean age 22.4, SD 0.7, 53% female). We asked about occupational noise exposure at age 22 and assessed depressive symptoms using the General Behavior Inventory (GBI) at age 17 and 22. Noise sensitivity and covariates were used in linear regression models. Perceived daily occupational noise exposure was associated, as a statistically independent main effect with depressive symptoms at age 22 (beta 1.19; 95% CI 0.09, 2.29) among all, and separately for females (beta 2.22; 95% CI 0.34, 4.09) but not males (beta 0.22; 95% CI -1.08, 1.52). Noise sensitivity was independently associated with depressive symptoms among all (beta 1.35; 95% CI 0.54, 2.17), and separately for males (beta 1.96; 95% CI 0.68, 3.24) but not females (beta 1.05; 95 % CI -0.04, 2.13). Noise sensitivity was independent of perceived occupational noise exposure. Pre-existing depressive symptoms at age 17 were predictive of perceived occupational noise exposure, suggesting complex interactions of noise and depression.

Structural Relationships between Environmental Factors, Psychological Health, and Academic Performance in Medical Students Engaged in Online Learning during the COVID-19 Pandemic

As a result of the COVID-19 outbreak and the enforced quarantine, universities in Malaysia were required to switch to an online class format. The resulting changes in the environmental factors of students may have had an impact on their psychological health and academic performance. This study aimed to determine the effects of environmental factors and the psychological health of students and examine their structural relationship with academic performance. A cross-sectional design with an online self-reported questionnaire was adopted, and the study was conducted among 207 undergraduate medical students at the Health Campus of Universiti Sains Malaysia. The environmental factors were measured using the lighting-noise-temperature scale and technology scale, while psychological health was assessed using the short version of the General Health Questionnaire and academic performance was determined based on Grade Point Average. Descriptive statistics and structural equation modeling were used for analysis of the data. No significant relationship was found between environmental factors and academic performance, or between environmental factors and psychological health. Nonetheless, the hypothesized structural model provided scientific evidence of an inverse relationship between psychological health and academic performance. These findings could be helpful for academics, health policymakers, and health educators in terms of understanding and promoting psychological wellbeing among university students, as well as improving their academic performance.

Noise Indicators Relating to Non-Auditory Health Effects in Children-A Systematic Literature Review

A systematic literature review was conducted to investigate which objective noise indicators related to various noise sources (i.e., aircraft, road-traffic, and ambient noise) are the best predictors of non-auditory health-effects in children. These relationships are discussed via a conceptual framework, taking into account main parameters such as the type of noise source, the exposure locations and their environments, the type of noise indicators, the children's mediating factors, and the type of non-auditory health effects. In terms of the procedure, four literature databases were screened and data was extracted on study design, types of noise sources, assessment method, health-based outcomes and confounders, as well as their associations. The quality of the studies was also assessed. The inclusion criteria focused on both indoor and outdoor environments in educational buildings and dwellings, considering that children spend most of their time there. From the 3337 uniquely collected articles, 36 articles were included in this review based on the defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. From the included literature, it was seen that noise exposure, assessed by energetic indicators, has significant associations with non-auditory health effects: psychophysiological, cognitive development, mental health and sleep effects. Percentile and event-based indicators provided significant associations to cognitive performance tasks and well-being dimension aspects.

A 28-day, 2-year study reveals that adolescents are more fatigued and distressed on days with greater NO2 and CO air pollution

This 2-year, 28-day study examined whether adolescents felt greater fatigue and emotional distress the same day and the day after air quality was worse. We linked objective daily air quality measurements to daily self-reports from 422 Mexican-American adolescents in Los Angeles County, California from 2009 to 2011 (50% girls, M_Age = 15 years). A robust, within-subject analysis of 9696 observations revealed that adolescents with ongoing physical complaints reported greater fatigue and emotional distress on days that the air contained higher levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and carbon monoxide (CO). Regardless of physical complaints, adolescents on average also reported greater fatigue the day after NO₂ levels were higher. The same-day and next-day associations between air pollution and distress were mediated via daily increases in fatigue. Results were robust when controlling for day of the week, and daily temperature and humidity. Sulfur dioxide (SO₂), ozone (O₃), PM_2.5 and PM₁₀ were not related to daily fatigue or distress.

Children’s Effortful Control Skills, but Not Their Prosocial Skills, Relate to Their Reactions to Classroom Noise

Environmental noise is one of the main sources of pollution in today’s modern world. Health effects associated with noise depend on both environmental exposure and individuals’ noise sensitivity. However, still little is known as to why some children are more noise sensitive than others. Studies to date have focused on adult populations and have not considered both cognitive and personality factors when explaining noise sensitivity. The current research investigates individual differences in noise sensitivity among elementary school children, with the aim of shedding light on its underlying mechanisms. Study 1 (n = 112) validated a novel questionnaire assessing children’s reactions to classroom noise against two measures of noise sensitivity that are commonly used in adult populations. Study 2 (n = 237) investigated how children’s reactions to classroom noise covaried with their effortful control and prosocial skills, both measured through a teacher report. Prosocial skills were not related to children’s reactions to noise. However, children with lower effortful control skills reported more negative reactions to classroom noise. Given the importance of effortful control skills to succeed at school, children at risk of school difficulty might also be the ones who are particularly vulnerable to noise.

Vitamin D2 protects acute and repeated noise stress induced behavioral, biochemical, and histopathological alterations: Possible antioxidant effect

Noise is an environmental stressor which causes distress and hearing loss in individuals residing in urban areas. Psychological deficits such as anxiety, depression, impaired memory and cognitive decline are caused by noise stress. Different vitamins have been used as a potential antioxidant for neuronal protection. In this study we investigate the anxiolytic, antidepressant and memory enhancing effect of vitamin D2 (Vit D2) following noise stress. Thirty-six albino rats were randomly divided into six groups. (i) Unstressed + corn oil (ii) Unstressed + Vit D2 (iii) Acute noise stress + corn oil (iv) Acute noise stress + Vit D2 (v) Repeated noise stress + corn oil (vi) Repeated noise stress + Vit D2. 600 IU/kg body weight of Vit D2 dosage was prepared in corn oil. Corn oil is used as vehicle and all the drugs administered via oral gavage till end of the experiment (day 16). Recorded sound of generator which was amplified by speakers and had 100 dB intensity was used as noise stress. Repeated stressed animals were exposed to noise (4-hrs) daily for 14 days, while acute stressed animals were exposed to noise (4-hrs) once after 14 days. Behavioral tests (elevated plus maze, light dark box, tail suspension test and Morris water maze) of all groups were performed after15 days treatment period. After behavioral tests rats received their last dosage and decapitated after 1-hr. Brain of all animals was removed and used for biochemical (oxidative stress biomarker, antioxidant enzymes and acetylcholinesterase) and histopathological estimations. Results show that Vit D2 decreased time spent in light box and open arm of light dark activity box and elevated plus maze test respectively (used for anxiety evaluation), decreased immobility time in tail suspension test (for depression) and improved cognitive ability evaluated by Morris water maze test in acute and repeated noise stressed rats. Furthermore, increased antioxidant enzymes activity, decreased lipid peroxidation and acetylcholinesterase activity were also observed in Vit D2 treated animals following acute and repeated noise stress. Normalization in histopathological studies was also observed in Vit D2 treated following acute and repeated noise stress. It is concluded that Vit D2 protects from noise stress induced behavioral, biochemical and histopathological impairment through its antioxidant potential.

Effect of Noise on Sleep and Autonomic Activity in Children according to Source

BACKGROUND

Noise has been a major issue in children due to its effect on emotional symptoms and sleep problems. The present study investigated the effect of noise on sleep and autonomic activity in children according to three variables, namely, road traffic noise, aircraft noise, and noise sensitivity (NS).

METHODS

The study is epidemiological in nature. A total of 474 subjects of four elementary schools were evaluated in conjunction with the 2014 noise map data gathered from two metropolitan regions, Seoul and Ulsan, in South Korea. Each subject completed the children's sleep habits questionnaire, and heart rate variability (HRV) was recorded. Analysis of covariance was performed using monthly income as a covariate.

RESULTS

Aircraft noise was associated with night waking (P = 0.047), whereas no significant association was observed between sleep and road traffic noise. After stratifying by NS, no significant results were obtained for road traffic noise. However, high levels of aircraft noise in the high-NS group were associated with high degrees of bedtime resistance (P = 0.049). In terms of HRV, no significant difference was observed in the results between groups.

CONCLUSION

Road traffic noise did not significantly alter sleep or autonomic activity in children, whereas aircraft noise exerted a negative effect on sleep. The findings suggest that the impact of noise on sleep in children varies depending on noise sources.

Effects of early noise exposure on hippocampal-dependent behaviors during adolescence in male rats: influence of different housing conditions

Central nervous system (CNS) development is a very complex process that can be altered by environmental stimuli such as noise, which can generate long-term auditory and/or extra-auditory impairments. We have previously reported that early noise exposure can induce hippocampus-related behavioral alterations in postnatal day (PND) 28 adolescent rats. Furthermore, we recently found biochemical modifications in the hippocampus (HC) of these animals that seemed to endure even in more mature animals (i.e. PND35) and that have not been studied along with behavioral correlates. Thus, the aim of this work was to reveal novel data about the effects of early noise exposure on hippocampal-dependent behaviors in more mature animals. Additionally, extended enriched environment (EE) housing was evaluated to determine its capacity to induce behavioral modifications, either by its neuroprotective ability or the greater stimulation that it generates. Male Wistar rats were exposed to different noise schemes at PND7 or PND15. Upon weaning, some animals were transferred to EE whereas others were kept in standard cages. At PND35, different hippocampal-dependent behavioral assessments were performed. Results showed noise-induced behavioral changes that differed according to the scheme and age of exposure used. In addition, housing in an EE was effective either in preventing some of these changes or in inducing the appearance of new behavioral modifications. These findings suggest that CNS development would be sensitive to the effects of different type of environmental stimuli such as noise or enriched housing, leading to maladaptive behavioral changes that last even until adolescence.

Associations between road traffic noise exposure at home and school and ADHD in school-aged children: the TRAILS study

Environmental noise may play a role in the manifestation and severity of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, but evidence is limited. We investigated the cross-sectional associations between residential and school road traffic noise exposure and ADHD symptoms and diagnosis. The sample included n = 1710, 10-12-year-old children from the TRAILS study in The Netherlands. ADHD symptoms were measured using a DSM-IV based subscale from the Child Behavior Checklist. Children with diagnosed ADHD originated from the clinic-referred cohort. Road traffic noise (L_den) was estimated at the residence and school level, by model calculation. Risk ratios for ADHD symptoms and ADHD diagnoses, and regression coefficients for symptom severity were estimated separately and simultaneously for residential and school road traffic noise. Adjusted multinomial models with residential road traffic noise showed that residential noise was not associated with ADHD symptoms, but was associated with lower risks for ADHD diagnosis (RR = 0.93; 95% CI 0.89, 0.97). Similar associations were observed for models including school road traffic noise and models including both exposures. No clear exposure response relationship was observed for associations between residential or school noise and ADHD symptom severity. We found no evidence for a harmful association between road traffic noise and ADHD. Associations between noise and lower risks for ADHD were observed only in referred cases with a confirmed ADHD diagnosis and may be due to residual confounding or selection bias. Future studies should focus on residential and school noise exposure, and study associations with ADHD symptoms and diagnosis over time.

Statistical analysis of childhood and early adolescent externalizing behaviors in a middle low income country

The article show the pattern of externalizing behavior across age, gender, school type, and school level, with reference to aggression, delinquency, and hyperactivity. The study samples were primary school pupils and secondary school students from three selected Local Government Areas (LGA) in Ogun State, Nigeria [Ado-Odo/Ota, Ifo, and Yewa South]. Their ages ranged from 10 to 20 years. The student/pupil sample was 1770 in all. The instrument used was an adapted version of Achenbach's child behavior checklist and youth self-report. Basic descriptive statistics like frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, as well as non-parametric statistics like Phi-coefficient, Chi-square, Goodman and Kruskal's gamma, Mann Whitney U test and Kruskal Wallis H test were utilized. Inferential parametric statistics like Pearson r, analysis of variance and simple regression were also utilized. Four major findings were reported. Firstly, the private schools irrespective of age, gender and level, scored higher than the public school in aggression, delinquency, and hyperactivity. Secondly, aggression is higher in secondary schools, while delinquency and hyperactivity are more prevalent in primary schools. Thirdly, school level and school type are the strongest predictors of externalizing behavior. Lastly, correspondence analysis showed a similar behavioral pattern for the three behaviors and three distinct behavioral patterns. i). Respondents aged 10 and below and those in primary schools (ii). Male, public and between 16 and 20. iii). Private, secondary, female and between 11 and 15. Implications of the study are discussed.

Influence of Classroom Acoustics on Noise Disturbance and Well-Being for First Graders

Several studies have shown so far that poor acoustics inside classrooms negatively affects the teaching and learning processes, especially at the lowest grades of education. However, the extent to which noise exposure or excessive reverberation affect well-being of children at school in their early childhood is still unanswered, as well as their awareness of noise disturbance. This work is a pilot study to investigate to which extent classroom acoustics affects the perceived well-being and noise disturbance in first graders. About 330 pupils aged from 6 to 7 years participated in the study. They belonged to 20 classes of 10 primary schools located in Torino (Italy), where room acoustic measurements were performed and where noise level was monitored during classes. The school buildings and the classrooms were balanced between socioeconomic status and acoustic conditions. Trained experimenters administered questionnaires in each class, where pupils answered all together during the last month of the school year (May). Questions included the happiness scale, subscales assessing self-esteem, emotional health, relationship at home and with friends, enjoyment of school, intensity and noise disturbance due to different sound sources, and quality of voice. The findings of the study suggest that long reverberation times, which are associated with poor classroom acoustics as they generate higher noise levels and degraded speech intelligibility, bring pupils to a reduced perception of having fun and being happy with themselves. Furthermore, bad classroom acoustics is also related to an increased perception of noise intensity and disturbance, particularly in the case of traffic noise and noise from adjacent school environments. Finally, happy pupils reported a higher perception of noise disturbance under bad classroom acoustic conditions, whereas unhappy pupils only reported complaints in bad classroom acoustics with respect to the perception of pleasances with himself or herself and of fitting in at school. Being a mother tongue speaker is a characteristic of children that brings more chances of attending classes in good acoustics, of being less disturbed, and of having more well-being, and richer districts presented better acoustic conditions, in turn resulting in richer districts also revealing a greater perception of well-being.

Evidence for Environmental Noise Effects on Health for the United Kingdom Policy Context: A Systematic Review of the Effects of Environmental Noise on Mental Health, Wellbeing, Quality of Life, Cancer, Dementia, Birth, Reproductive Outcomes, and Cognition

This systematic review commissioned by the UK Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), considers how the evidence base for noise effects on health has changed following the recent reviews undertaken for the WHO Environmental Noise Guidelines. This systematic review assesses the quality of the evidence for environmental noise effects on mental health, wellbeing, and quality of life; birth and reproductive outcomes; and cognition for papers published since the WHO reviews (mid-2015 to March 2019), as well as for cancer and dementia (January 2014 to March 2019). Using the GRADE methodology (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) most evidence was rated as low quality as opposed to very low quality in the previous reviews. There is now low-quality evidence for a harmful effect of road traffic noise on medication use and interview measures of depression and anxiety and low quality evidence for a harmful effect of road traffic noise, aircraft noise, and railway noise on some cancer outcomes. Many other conclusions from the WHO evidence reviews remain unchanged. The conclusions remain limited by the low number of studies for many outcomes. The quantification of health effects for other noise sources including wind turbine, neighbour, industrial, and combined noise remains a research priority.

Behavioral and Emotional Disorders and Transportation Noise among Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Children and adolescents may be particularly vulnerable to environmental influences such as noise which can affect mental well-being. The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the effect of transportation noise on behavioral and emotional disorders in children and adolescents using a meta-analytic approach. Therefore, we searched four databases (Pubmed, Embase, PsychINFO, and PSYNDEX) and grey literature until February of 2019. We identified 14 articles from 10 studies examining the effect of transportation noise exposure on the mental health of children. These studies predominately used the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and mainly focused on schoolchildren and adolescents aged 9–10 years and 15–17 years in Europe. Three studies could be included in the meta-analysis. In sum, the odds for hyperactivity/inattention and total difficulties was significantly increased by 11% (Odds Ratio, OR = 1.11 (95% Confidence Interval, CI 1.04–1.19), respectively 9% (95% CI 1.02–1.16) per 10 dB road traffic noise. Thus, we obtained evidence for an effect of road traffic noise on hyperactivity/inattention and total difficulties, although we could consider few studies. Future studies are needed that use similar techniques to assess outcomes and exposures at schools and in homes. This would make it possible to conduct an individual participant data pooled analysis of the data.