A Denmark study found that long-term residential exposure to road traffic and railway noise may increase the risk of dementia.
As released in the BMJ, the study involved more than 1.9 million adults aged 60 and older, residing in Denmark.
National health registers were also analyzed to establish cases of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.
“In our large nationwide cohort, we found long term residential exposure to road traffic and railway noise to be associated with increased risk of all-cause dementia,” according to the study’s authors.
“These associations followed positive exposure-response associations, with a levelling off or slight decreases in risk at high noise exposures for most of the exposure metrics.”
“Expanding our knowledge on the harmful effects of noise on health is essential for setting priorities and implementing effective policies and public health strategies focused on the prevention and control of diseases, including dementia.”
