Noise and health in the urban environment

Noise, including noise from transport, industry, and neighbors, is a prominent feature of the urban environment. This paper reviews the effects of environmental noise on the non-auditory aspects of health in urban settings. Exposure to transport noise disturbs sleep in the laboratory, but generally not in field studies, where adaptation occurs. Noise interferes with complex task performance, modifies social behavior, and causes annoyance. Studies of occupational noise exposure suggest an association with hypertension, whereas community studies show only weak relations between noise and cardiovascular disease. Aircraft and road-traffic noise exposure are associated with psychological symptoms and with the use of psychotropic medication, but not with the onset of clinically defined psychiatric disorders. In carefully controlled studies, noise exposure does not seem to be related to low birth weight or to congenital birth defects. In both industrial studies and community studies, noise exposure is related to increased catecholamine secretion. In children, chronic aircraft noise exposure impairs reading comprehension and long-term memory and may be associated with increased blood pressure. Noise from neighbors causes annoyance and sleep and activity interference health effects have been little studied. Further research is needed for examining coping strategies and the possible health consequences of adaptation to noise.     

Noise levels in an urban Asian school environment

Background noise is known to adversely affect speech perception and speech recognition. High levels of background noise in school classrooms may affect student learning, especially for those pupils who are learning in a second language. The current study aimed to determine the noise level and teacher speech-to-noise ratio (SNR) in Hong Kong classrooms. Noise level was measured in 146 occupied classrooms in 37 schools, including kindergartens, primary schools, secondary schools and special schools, in Hong Kong. The mean noise levels in occupied kindergarten, primary school, secondary school and special school classrooms all exceeded recommended maximum noise levels, and noise reduction measures were seldom used in classrooms. The measured SNRs were not optimal and could have adverse implications for student learning and teachers’ vocal health. Schools in urban Asian environments are advised to consider noise reduction measures in classrooms to better comply with recommended maximum noise levels for classrooms.     

Quality of life and urban environment. S?o Paulo city, Brazil]

The concept of the quality of life is presented: its main aspects and the possibilities of this assessment and measurement are presented. Community and individual features are described and related to causal factors. S. Paulo city, Brazil, is seen to be an urban environment with quality of life problems on which some considerations are offered.     

Food, health, and the urban environment

Both the production and the consumption of food should help reduce the risk of food-borne and non-communicable disease and prevent micro-nutrient deficiency. That a safe healthy diet can also be environmentally sound is a bonus. Growing foods that promote health in an environment near to consumers can contribute to reduced fuel consumption, pollution, transport and packaging costs, and can promote biodiversity. This approach can also help create local jobs, improve access to food, and promote a sustainable environment. The World Health Organization recommends an intake of more than 400 grams of vegetables (in addition to potatoes) and fruit every day because this helps prevent non-communicable diseases and micro-nutrient deficiency. Therefore, urban food and nutrition policies are needed to promote health through an integrated approach to food, health, and the environment within local communities. The benefits of developing urban food and nutrition policies to help increase local food production include environmental, social, direct, and indirect economic benefits, in addition to the health benefits. These issues are discussed in this paper.     

Atmospheric asbestos pollution in the urban environment: Milan, Casale Monferrato, Brescia, Ancona, Bologna and Florence]

The atmospheric concentrations of asbestos fibres were measured in 6 towns by long term sampling of air (3 weeks) and by counting at TEM both long and short fibres. Chrisotile and amphiboles were separately counted. For each town high traffic, low traffic and no traffic zones were considered as well as industrial areas and areas with possible and probable sources of asbestos pollution. For Milano the seasonal variations in atmospheric concentrations of asbestos fibres were also recorded in a central square. The maximum concentrations of total fibres was found in Milano (251.7 fibres/liter) and the minimum in Bologna (0.3 fibres/liter). Chrisotile and ultrashort fibres are the most frequent component of the atmospheric pollution. The fibre counts to which people is exposed are far below the levels at which it has been possible to detect risks in industry: however the possibility of a synergism between asbestos and other pollutants with consequent increase of the total carcinogenic potential of the polluted atmosphere cannot be ruled out. The control of the most active sources of asbestos dispersion must be considered in a correct balance between costs and social benefits.     

Human and environmental factors affecting Aedes aegypti distribution in an arid urban environment

Aedes aegypti has reappeared in urban communities in the southwestern U.S.A. in the 1990s after a 40-year absence. In 2003 and 2004, a systematic survey was conducted throughout metropolitan Tucson, AZ, to identify human and environmental factors associated with Ae. aegypti distribution within an arid urban area. Aedes aegypti presence and abundance were measured monthly using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention enhanced oviposition traps at sampling sites established in a grid at 3- to 4-km intervals across the city. Sampling occurred in the summer rainy season (July through September), the peak of mosquito activity in the region. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine relationships between mosquito density and factors that could influence mosquito distribution. House age was the only factor that showed a consistent significant association with Ae. aegypti abundance in both years: older houses had more mosquito eggs. This is the 1st study of Ae. aegypti distribution at a local level to identify house age as an explanatory factor independent of other human demographic factors. Further research into the reasons why mosquitoes were more abundant around older homes may help inform and refine future vector surveillance and control efforts in the event of a dengue outbreak in the region.     

社会经济地位、环境因素及个人行为对肺结核发病危险的研究

目的：探讨社会经济地位、个人行为（吸烟、饮酒）、环境因素（居住和工作环境）、体重指数（BMI）等对成都地区成人肺结核发病危险的影响,以确定该地区肺结核的主要危险因素。方法：采用群体病例－对照研究、多变量多指标测量、多因素分析得出结论。结果：由职业、教育程度和家庭收入测量的社会经济地位、吸烟、饮酒等与肺结核发病无关;而吸烟合并饮酒者,肺结核发病危险显著增加（OR=6.12,95％CI＝1.15－32.49);其他与肺结核发病相关的因素,按危险度顺位排列是暴露于化学气雾（OR＝5.15,95％CI＝1.44－18.40）、低BMI（OR＝4.72,95％CI＝2.68－8.33）、室内潮湿（OR＝4.06,95％CI＝2.25－7.33）和暴露于大量粉尘（OR＝2.35,95％CI＝1.18－4.70）。结论：不良个人行为（吸烟＋饮酒）,拥挤、阴暗潮湿和卫生状况差的环境,长期暴露于大量粉尘或化学气雾与成都地区成人肺结核发病有密切关系。     

The urban environment, poverty and health in developing countries

The process of urbanization could be described as one of the major global environmental changes directly affecting human health today. Populations particularly affected are in developing countries where rapid urban growth has been accompanied by massive urban poverty. Urban environmental health impacts, particularly the impact on adults of an environment of poverty, are still poorly understood. Definitions of the urban environment tend to be physical, excluding the complex ramifications of a social setting of disadvantage. This paper provides a brief overview of existing knowledge on the links between environment, poverty and health in urban areas of developing countries, with an emphasis on the policy implications implied by research on health differential between groups within cities. The paper argues that urban poverty and inequalities in conditions between groups within cities present a central crisis confronting urban policy in terms of human health and quality of life. The paper suggests that definitions of the urban environment tend to consider only the physical, and not the social complexity of the urban setting. The review concludes that the scale and the complexity of the urban crisis in developing countries demands a real commitment to re-thinking the management of cities to address multiple deprivation. The paper suggests that this challenges urban professionals who continue to act with a bias towards unintegrated single sector solutions despite claims to the contrary.     

BMI, auto use, and the urban environment in San Francisco

The epidemic of overweight and obesity has sparked interest in urban planning circles. Many believe the built environment directly influences physical health, and recent empirical evidence supports this notion. Cross-sectional survey data was collected from a sample of San Francisco residents (n=670) in the summer of 2005. Body mass index (BMI) served as the dependent variable. Independent variables included population density and auto use. Results indicate an inverse relationship between density and auto use as well as higher BMI scores for respondents reporting high levels of auto use for the work/school commute and trips to the grocery store.