Noise study reveals heart and health negatives of living close to airports

People exposed to high aircraft noise levels could be at greater risk of poor heart function, reveals a new study led by UCL researchers. Published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC), the investigation looked at data from the UK Biobank of 3,635 participants who had detailed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the heart and who lived close to four major airports in England: Birmingham, Gatwick, Heathrow, and Manchester. The scientists compared the hearts of those who lived in areas with higher than recommended aircraft noise with those who lived in lower aircraft noise areas, finding that those in the first group had stiffer and thicker heart muscles that contracted and expanded less easily and were less efficient at pumping blood around the body, especially those people exposed to higher aircraft noise at night. Heart MRIs were done at least three years after the estimates of aircraft noise in the participants' neighbourhoods. Participants who...