More than a nuisance, airplane and road noise has been proven to contribute to significant health problems, including cardiovascular diseases in older adults and diminished learning in children.

• A study of 6 million older people and 89 airports in the US, including Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and Seattle’s King County International Airport, linked aircraft noise with cardiovascular disease and increased hospital admissions.
• In a study of 46 US airports and surrounding schools, including 5 Beacon Hill schools, statistically significant associations were established between airport noise and lower reading and math scores as compared to non-impacted schools. The study also found that sound-insulated schools were comparable to scores from schools not impacts by aircraft noise.

Additional health effects are still being studied.

• A prospective study found that long-term aircraft noise exposure may be linked to metabolic outcomes, particularly increased waist circumference and Type 2 diabetes.
• A large case-control study indicated that aircraft, road, and railway traffic noise might lead to depression.