Noise at Work Tied to Higher Heart Disease Risk in Nordic Study

Researchers combined data from six Nordic countries, covering 83,103 adults. They wanted to see if loud jobs raise the chance of heart problems like heart attacks. The team followed participants over many years, collecting information on jobs, income, education, smoking, and exercise.

Jobs were classified using a noise scale that ranged from less than 70 decibels to 85 decibels or more. Residential noise from traffic was also measured for each person. Researchers used a statistical method called Cox regression to calculate how often heart issues occurred, adjusting for lifestyle factors.

People who regularly heard 85 decibels or louder at work faced a 10 percent higher risk of ischemic heart disease and a 12 percent higher risk of a heart attack. Men who worked in noise above 75 decibels also showed a significant increase. Combining loud work with noisy neighborhoods did not make things worse.

The results suggest that high occupational noise can harm the heart, but the study cannot prove other job factors are not involved. More research is needed to confirm the link and to explore whether the risk is due to noise alone. Future studies should also look at different industries and protective measures.