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Noise Pollution In Cairo Can Be Bad For The Heart! If you have ever been to Cairo, you would certainly not forget the excessively high level of noise, from blaring car horns to wedding parties. A person living in the city center is like spending all day inside a factory because the noise level is of an average of 90 decibels (dB) and never drops below 70 dB. Such high noise pollution has attained alarming levels that could lead to hearing problems, irritability and even death. A 2007 study by the Egyptian National Research Centre (NRC) indicated that the noise levels in Cairo on different streets at different times of day are very much over the limits set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In fact, the noise levels in downtowns may reach as high as 90 dB at 7.30 am, as compared with 35-55 dB that is set by EPA. Under stressful condition, the stress hormones could raise, which in turn cause inflammation and changes in body chemistry that could lead to health hazards such as impaired blood circulation and even heart attacks. In other words, noise could kill people in a similar way as the chronic stress does! In Cairo, the industrial zones and residential areas are not separated at all, so people like policemen who are on the street most of their time can be severely affected. Under such noise environment, people begin to lose their hearing over time and eventually they might have to start using hearing aids.
According to environmental health specialist at the NRC, car horns, shouting, ageing engines, loud music and occasional parties would easily cause people to have many health problems like high blood pressure, hearing loss, cardiovascular diseases and general irritability. Moreover, pregnant women who are constantly exposed to high noise levels might have retraction in blood vessels and give birth to small babies. Noise has been considered by World Health Organization (WHO) as the world's third worst pollution, after air and water pollution. As a matter of fact, exposing for more than 8 hours a day to sound in excess of 85 db is potentially hazardous. The cost of such noise pollution can be substantial, ranging from medical problems mentioned to non-concentration at work, absenteeism, accidents, handicaps, etc. Therefore, it is cheaper to protect oneself from noise than what is might cause later. A housewife who left the city center 3 years ago recalled she heard car horns, people shouting, shops opening and closing, the doorman talking loudly. She now lives in a residential area 20 kilometers (12 miles) away from the city center. She felt that she knew the life of everyone while she was in bed, and she just does not want to have such a stressful lifestyle that is full of noise and traffic. The 1994 law prohibits noise level to be exceeded 52 dB during the day, 37 dB at night, and 90 dB in industrial areas like factories, but these guidelines were largely ignored. As such, tens of thousands of people are moving to quieter and less-polluted suburbs in the desert, especially with the expanding population in Cairo. Although the Egyptian ministries of health and environment are planning to monitor noise levels, they have yet to fix the exact date for it to begin gathering data.
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