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exposure at school to children having more headaches, being more tired and having raised stress hormone levels in the blood. One study associated deterioration in physical and mental quality of life in people over 60 with exposure to road trafc noise. 5. Cognitive processes. Several studies suggest that schoolchildren exposed to noise from aircraft and road trafc experience learning and comprehension difculties. One study found that noise at work afected the job performance of teenage boys. 6. Hearing. Little is known about the impact of noise on the hearing of children, although it is likely any efects will be cumulative over the long term. Research has been done on the impact of loud noise from concerts, discotheques and listening to music from headphones on teenagers, with the most common efects being short-term tinnitus and hearing loss. Te researchers advise that more research is needed, especially on little studied groups of vulnerable people, including those with mental illness, shift workers and those with tinnitus. “Several studies suggest that schoolchildren exposed to noise from aircra" and road traffic experience learning and comprehension difficulties.” NOISE IMPACTS ON HEALTH 10 Children are more hyperactive if they live near busy roads Children living close to busy roads may have an increased risk of hyperactivity. They may also have more emotional problems, especially if they are exposed to higher levels of noise during the night, according to research carried out on children’s health in Germany. Research on the negative health efects of noise on children has mainly focused on aircraft noise at school, but less is known about the impact of road trafc noise on children at home. In this study, the researchers investigated the impact of road trafc noise at home on 10-year-old children’s mental health and behaviour, including problems of hyperactivity or inattention and emotional problems such as being anxious, easily scared or unhappy. Information on the 872 children in this study came from two ongoing German population-based studies, LISAplus6 and GINIplus7 , which are following the physical wellbeing of healthy children, from birth to the age of 10 years, and assessed behavioural problems at the age of 10. Using data from existing noise maps, the researchers assigned maximum and minimum levels of noise at the exterior wall exposed to the most noise (facing the street) and the exterior wall exposed to the least noise, at each child’s home. Te researchers chose two noise indicators, the night noise indicator to assess the disturbance of children’s sleep by night-time noise and the day-evening-night noise indicator to measure overall noise annoyance. Te researchers assessed the children for behavioural problems using a standardised questionnaire and various aspects of their behaviour were categorised as normal, borderline or abnormal. 6 LISAplus: Te Influence of Life-style factors on the development of the Immune System and Allergies in East and West Germany Plus the influence of traffic emissions and genetics http://www.helmholtz-muenchen.de/en/epi1/research/ research-units/research-unit-1-environmental-epidemiology/ projects/lisa-plus/index.html 7 GINIplus: German Infant Study on the influence of Nutrition Intervention Plus environmental and genetic influences on allergy development. http://www.helmholtz-muenchen.de/en/epi1/research/ research-units/research-unit-1-environmental-epidemiology/ projects/giniplus/index.html Source: Tiesler, C.M.T., Birk, M., Tiering, E. et al. (2013). Exposure to road trafc noise and children’s behavioural problems and sleep disturbance: Results from the GINIplus and LISAplus studies. Environmental Research. 123: 1–8. DOI:10.1016/j. envres.2013.01.009 Contact: heinrich@ helmholtz-muenchen. de Temes: Environment and health, Noise Te study concluded that being exposed to higher noise levels was associated with signifcantly greater problems of hyperactivity and inattention. Te researchers also found that children were more likely to display emotional problems if they were exposed to higher noise levels. In particular, night-time exposure to noise may have more adverse efects than exposure to day-time noise, because the body needs adequate sleep to remain healthy. Te researchers also assessed the impact of night-time noise exposure on sleeping problems in 287 of the children, as this data was available for this subgroup. Children appeared to have more sleeping problems, especially falling asleep, with increasing exposure to night-time noise levels. It is possible that road trafc noise levels that the researchers used do not necessarily refect the actual noise levels the children were exposed to – for example the researchers had no information about any noise insulation that had been installed in the houses. Tis study focused on the environment where the children spent most of their time – at home, which the researchers highlight as a major strength of the study. “…night-time exposure to noise may have more adverse effects than exposure to day-time noise, because the body needs adequate sleep to remain healthy.” NOISE IMPACTS ON HEALTH 11 Reviewing the multiple impacts of noise pollution While occupational exposure to noise has declined, ‘social’ exposure in the form of personal 

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