Living near airports ‘can raise blood pressure risk’

LIVING near a very noisy airport can lead to serious heart problems and significantly increase your blood pressure, experts have warned.

More than 200 people aged between 40 and 66 who were exposed to airport noise for at least three years were tracked.

Half had to put up with more than 60 decibels of noise, equivalent to conversation levels in a restaurant, and the other half were exposed to less than 55dB.

Those enduring the higher noise level were 67 per cent more likely to suffer high blood pressure, according to the team, presenting their findings at the EuroPRevent heart conference in France.

People who lived near the loudest airports for more than three years also showed signs of damage to the structures of the heart.

They were more likely to have a stiffer aorta, the main artery taking blood away from the heart, and an enlarged left ventricle – one of the chambers of the heart.

Co-author Marta Rojek, of Jagiellonian University Medical College in Krakow, Poland, said: ‘The volume of air traffic has skyrocketed since jet-powered planes were introduced in the 1960s.

‘There were 64million take-offs and landings in 2013 and this figure is set to double over the next 20 years.

‘Our results suggest that living near an airport for three years or more is associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure. These changes may then lead to damage of the aorta and heart which could increase the risk of having a heart attack.’