Research

Hormonal

Acute nighttime exposure to aircraft noise (approx. 60 dB peak) dose-dependently impairs endothelial function and increases plasma adrenaline levels in healthy adults, an effect mediated by oxidative stress.

If you live near an airport or noisy area, your body may be under chronic low-grade stress even if you sleep through the noise. This stress releases adrenaline and damages your blood vessel lining (endothelial function), increasing long-term cardiovascular risk. Protecting your sleep environment from noise is a valid preventive health measure, potentially as important as diet or exercise for vascular health.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
In healthy adults, acute nighttime aircraft noise exposure dose-dependently impairs endothelial function and stimulates adrenaline release. Noise-induced ED may be in part due to increased production in reactive oxygen species and may thus be one mechanism contributing to the observed association of chronic noise exposure with cardiovascular disease.
Frank P. Schmidt et al. · European Heart Journal · 2013

Why this rating

Randomized, blinded, controlled field study with objective physiological measures (FMD, plasma catecholamines) in a healthy population.

Source

Effect of nighttime aircraft noise exposure on endothelial function and stress hormone release in healthy adults

Frank P. Schmidt et al. · European Heart Journal · 2013

DOI 10.1093/eurheartj/eht269

crossover · n=75Cited 333×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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