Week 7 reading- Shhh... Flashcards
What does the WHO organisation say about noise levels in the current world?
-Our world is too noisy and that this is harming our health.
-In 2018 WHO designated noise as an “underestimated threat” to public health
How do people seek silence in the modern age?
Join monasteries for a silent retreat or head to the hills for a weekend’s peace. There is even an increasing trend for spending time in sensory deprivation or flotation tanks
In the age of noise, Norwegian explorer Erling Kagge calls silence “the new luxury”.
Sustained physiological responses to sound
-Our body responds to sound (e.g. blood pressure goes up, muscles tense, body releases stress hormones)
-This happens because sound is important from an evolutionary perspective: giving vital information and helping us navigate the world
-Short-term response to sound is good (fight or flight) but in the long term sustained physiological response due to excess noise in our environment can be detrimental : lead to health problems (anxiety, depression, cardiovascular disease).
European Environment Agency view on noise
Noise is an ongoing and widespread problem in Europe, with at least 1 in 5 people consistently exposed to levels considered harmful to health.
Flotation tanks: what are they?
-Around since the 1950s, essentially floating in a tank of water with sensory input limited as much as possible.
-Sensory deprivation= used to study how the brain responds to a lack of external input
-Evolved over time to be less claustrophobic and are used as a therapeutic tool.
-In these tanks, as the author noted, it’s quiet but not completely silent. They could hear the sound of their own breathing and some people report hearing the sound of their eyes blinking.
Meditation benefits
-Flotation tanks and the ability to focus on sounds/ natural rhythms of the body e.g. heart beating, breathing allows individuals to get into a meditative or relaxed state.
-Reducing stress, promoting a sense of greater well-being and offering relief from chronic pain and migraines.
How to be silent
-Make sure you want to be silent. In tests, intentionality appears key to health benefits.
-A few minutes of regular silence is more beneficial to stress response that longer periods less often
-Silence taken in a natural setting with a guided relaxation technique brings the biggest gains to health
Benefit of reducing night time noise
-Reduce night time noise to under 40 decibels to promote better health
Feinstein study on the use of a flotation tank as a therapeutic tool
-Recruited 50 people
-People had been diagnosed with a wide variety of anxiety and stress-related conditions
-Answers questionnaires before and after flotation
-The participants reported decreases in stress, muscle tension, pain and symptoms of depression after a single, 1-hour float.
-Post‑float measures also showed a significant increase in feelings of relaxation along with overall well-being.
-The focus on breathing/ the meditated state that individuals got into as a result of the flotation tank allowed anxious thoughts to dissipate (stops rumination associated with chronic anxiety and depression)
-Feinstein claims positive effects last up to 48 hours
Feinstein study on ‘long term’ effects of flotation on the brain?
-48 people participated
- Either three 90-minute float sessions or three 90-minute periods of relaxing on a reclining chair
-Spread over a period of three weeks.
-Each participant had brain scanned using fMRI at beginning and end of trial
-Float sessions uniquely decreased activity in the default mode network (DMN): collection of brain regions that are active when the brain is at rest or not engaged in a specific task
-Feinstein says this is indicative of a reduction in internal mind chatter. High activity in these areas when the brain is ‘at rest’ is associated with rumination, stress and anxiety.
Negative effects of flotation tanks and silence?
- The earliest studies of sensory deprivation are rife with people who panicked and experienced hallucinations
-Early tanks looked like coffins and essentially ‘mummified people’. Set up would upset even a non-anxious person
-These days evolved to best less claustrophobic and altered perception tends to involve benign visual auras or subtle humming : this is explained by Feinstein who says it is a result of the brain trying to fill in/ make sense of a dark silent world.
Noise in cities. Examples of dB of noise we are exposed to…
-The World Health Organization says that people living in cities like Mumbai, New York, Paris, Tokyo and Buenos Aires are being exposed to far more than the recommended 40 decibels (dB) of noise at night.
-A quiet rural area rests at around 30dB
-A restaurant conversation = 60dB
-Lawnmower= 90dB
What level of noise for an extended period is damaging?
-Anything louder than 85 dB for extended periods can cause permanent hearing loss.
-Regular noise over 50 dB is linked to a multitude of health issues, ranging from sleep disturbance to problems learning and even cardiovascular disease.
London, an attempt to decrease noise?
-In 2004, the office of the mayor of London published a report called Sounder City.
-The strategy highlighted issues surrounding both industrial and transport-related noise, and how to manage it.
-Supposedly London has become a quiverer city because of this by providing recommendations for quieter buses, reducing noise from roads and also controlling noise from aircraft
General changes cities have made to reduce noise?
- noise-reducing road coatings
- greenery that muffles sound.
