Noise Action Week, which is co-ordinated by the Environmental Protection UK, takes place between 20 and 25 May this year.
If you believe that noise can have a negative effect on your well-being, you’re not alone.
There are millions of Britons affected by noise and our ability to reduce ambient noise, considering the hi-tech and noise producing gadgets that are considered almost imperative to our daily lives, may make this untenable.
There is increasing evidence that long-term environmental noise above a certain level can have a negative influence on your health. These effects can be physical, mental and possibly even disrupt children’s learning.
It’s not all unmanageable though, and where it may be unlikely that you may be able to relocate to a quieter environment right now, there are a number of actions you can take in your personal capacity to cut down on the noise:
Be mindful, wherever you are. If music or news is your go to when heading out/home each day, use headphones. If you prefer the opposite, use noise cancelling headphones.
Set time aside at home to be quiet. Switch off and unplug what you can every day and especially where you sleep. Rediscover reading a book in the bath. Practice quieter exercise.
Build a bookcase against an exterior wall – stacks of books can help reduce noise. Hanging thick curtains can also help dampen sound. Reinforce your windows where possible.
If you can’t combat external sources of noise, opt for white noise. It contradicts the idea of reducing noise by switching off and unplugging, but sometimes we need to work with the environment we’re in.
Use earplugs, with caution. If you can’t cope with noise, at all, earplugs can be a good option, although it’s important that you use plugs that can’t be pushed too far into the ear, that are comfortable and mouldable to your ear and are easy to remove and clean.
At AquAid we’re constantly striving to reduce our impact on the environment where we can: scheduled bottled water deliveries; 23 branches throughout the UK to keep your water coolers ‘local’ and of course, noiseless water coolers dispensing chilled or piping hot water at the push of a button.
