SOUND ADVICE FOR FAT LOSS
Don’t let your return to noisy urban life put a dampener on your health. Dial down the risks with a rural staycation
The semi-normality of life after lockdown has its benefits – a chance to grab a beer with your colleagues after work; a lunchtime sandwich made by someone other than yourself. But for those of you who commute to busy towns or cities, a return to the hubbub of pre-pandemic life can also have a detrimental effect on your stress hormones – which is bad news for your waistline, too.
Back-to-work weight gain isn’t just an inevitable consequence of PE with Joe ending. Multiple studies have linked urban noise pollution with adverse health outcomes. According to a study in the Environmental Health Perspectives journal, higher 24-hour noise levels are associated with an increased risk of depressive symptoms. Another paper linked daytime clamour to poorer heart health.
More recently, a study by the University of Oxford warned of the correlation between traffic noise and waist circumference. For every extra 10dB of sound, participants in the study had a 2% increased risk of obesity, even when accounting for diet and exercise. Scientists posit that stress is to blame: chronically high cortisol triggers enzymes that instruct your fat cells to grow.
The antidote? Swerve any planned city breaks and book in a countryside staycation (see page 129 for inspiration). It’ll bring stress back to baseline and breathe new life into your training. Researchers at the University of East Anglia found that spending time in the peace and quiet of nature not only lowers salivary cortisol levels – a key marker of anxiety – but also reduces diastolic blood pressure and improves sleep duration. Until then, a good set of noisecancellers wouldn’t go amiss. Now, will that be British Bird Song Vol 1 or Relaxing Forest Rain?