Living exposed to noise with a volume higher than 65 decibels in the morning and 55 at night greatly increases the risk of hearing, psychological and physiological problems, as well as all those linked to lack of sleep and rest
Despite the problems that noise pollution can generate, it is currently estimated that one in five Europeans are exposed to noise levels that are considered harmful to health
To know the level of noise to which we are exposed, there are several mobile applications capable of measuring the exact noise that surrounds us
The noise It’s one of the main problems faced by the inhabitants of large cities. In addition to the inconvenience that the neighbors can cause on a crazy night out, the inhabitants of these large cities must also deal with the noise coming from restaurants, bars and leisure areas, from new construction works, from airplanes and, especially, to the automobile traffic, which concentrates around 80% of the noise experienced in large cities.
Living in an extremely noisy environment has serious consequences both for health, and not only at the hearing level. According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), living exposed to noise louder than 65 decibels in the morning and 55 at night greatly increases the risk of hearing, psychological and physiological problemsas well as all those linked to the lack of sleep and rest.
In particular, noise can cause hearing loss, irritability, stress, aggressiveness, anxiety and insomnia. In addition, it is related to an increase in blood pressure and heart and respiratory rates. However, and despite all the problems that noise pollution can generate, it is currently estimated that one in five Europeans are exposed to noise levels considered harmful to healthaccording to data from the European Environment Agency (EMEA).
How to measure the noise level around you with your mobile?
When a noise is annoying to us, we notice it right away, especially if that noise appears at night. Nevertheless, To measure the level of noise around us requires much more than our mere perception.
Fortunately, thanks to the technological advances achieved in recent years now we can know what is the exact level of noise around us with our mobile phonealthough for this we must first download an application that can turn our device into a sound level meter.
Both in the App Store and in the Play Store we can find several options. However, given the precision it offers, the two more recommended alternatives are Sound Meterin the event that we use an Android phone, or NIOSH Sound Level Meterin case we use an Apple phone.
In the case of NIOSH Sound Level Meter, this app is characterized by offering the best features of professional sound level meters and noise dosimeters in a simple and easy to use package. Developed by experienced acoustic engineers and hearing loss experts, the app is completely free and has up-to-date information screens on noises considered dangerous and guidelines to prevent hearing loss, among others.
In the case of Sound Meter, this app uses the built-in microphone of the mobile phone to measure the noise volume in decibels, which shows on the screen. The app has a simple interface, so reading the measurements is quite easy. However, it has trouble accurately measuring noise above 90 decibels.
In addition to these applications, we can also find other options such as Decibel Meter Prowhich stands out for its careful interface, Too Noisy Proa version focused on controlling the noise that occurs in the classrooms of the youngest, or SPLnFFT Noise Meteran app that combines a sound pressure level meter with a recommended spectrum analyzer and that has been recommended by health experts, but that It has the handicap of being paid and available only in English.
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