Traffic, alarms, notifications: noise is with us all day and we barely notice it. But the body does. That's why the silence of a fjord or a glacier feels like physical relief.
Does noise affect health?
Yes. The World Health Organization (2018) associates prolonged exposure to traffic noise with sleep disturbance, chronic annoyance and higher cardiovascular risk.
What does silence do?
Bernardi and colleagues (2006) measured the body's response to different types of music and found that two-minute silent pauses lowered heart rate and blood pressure more than relaxing music. In a study with mice, Kirste and colleagues (2015) observed that two hours of silence a day stimulated the formation of new neurons in the hippocampus, an area linked to memory.
Where is the deepest silence?
In Greenland, among icebergs. In Antarctica, where the only sound is the ice. In the mountains of Kyrgyzstan, where you hear the wind and nothing else.
Frequently asked questions
- Does city noise cause stress?
- Yes, prolonged exposure is associated with worse sleep and higher cardiovascular risk.
- Does silence have benefits?
- It helps lower heart rate and blood pressure and supports mental rest.
- What are the quietest places to travel?
- Remote, sparsely populated places such as Greenland, Antarctica or the mountains of Central Asia.
Related trips
Keep reading
This article is for information only and does not replace consultation with a health professional.
Sources
- Organización Mundial de la Salud (2018). Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region.
- Bernardi, L., Porta, C. y Sleight, P. (2006). Cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and respiratory changes induced by different types of music. Heart.
- Kirste, I. et al. (2015). Is silence golden? Effects of auditory stimuli and their absence on adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Brain Structure and Function.
