Environmental noise is linked to adverse cardiovascular effects. However, few studies have examined people's heart rate variability (HRV) changes related to noise sources, despite the elevated cardiovascular risk associated with reduced HRV....
✦ The floor
Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
No immediate practice change is warranted, but the findings reinforce the importance of counselling patients on noise exposure as a systemic health risk beyond hearing loss alone.
Demonstrating a link between everyday noise exposure and autonomic nervous system function (heart rate variability) broadens the public-health case for hearing conservation programs.
- 01Used the Apple Hearing Study cohort, one of the largest real-world noise-exposure datasets available.
- 02Examined both environmental and headphone noise as exposures.
- 03Outcome was heart rate variability (HRV), a marker of autonomic nervous system health.
- 04Findings suggest noise exposure may have cardiovascular implications beyond auditory damage.
- 05Published in Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology (2026).
Environmental and headphone noise exposure is associated with changes in heart rate variability.
studypartially supportedNoise exposure may affect the autonomic nervous system, not just hearing.
studypartially supported- PMID
- 42697936
- DOI
- 10.1038/s41370-026-00970-8.
- Journal
- Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 2b
- Population
- Apple Hearing Study cohort participants exposed to environmental and headphone noise
- Intervention
- Environmental and headphone noise exposure (measured via Apple devices)
- Comparator
- Lower noise exposure levels within the same cohort
Primary outcomes
Heart rate variability changes associated with noise exposure levels
