Do you snore, or sleep beside someone who does?
Bad news for people who live beside busy main streets or take a particularly traffic heavy route to work. Researchers have discovered a strong link between those who snore and feel fatigued during the day with exposure to heavy traffic pollution.
They studied 12,000 people from different cities across Northern Europe and found that a disproportionate amount of participants who lived close to busy roads suffered from heavy snoring and felt sleepy during the day.
Epidemiological studies have shown that people who constantly snore loudly are at an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. These people are said to experience more hypertension, cardiac arrhythmia, strokes and heart attacks compared to people who do not snore.
Speaking to
The Sunday Times, Professor Stephen Holgate, said that living by a busy road had been shown to have an impact on lungs similar to smoking 10 cigarettes a day.
This is because, he explains, heavy traffic pollution can cause airway inflammation and Diesel particles are highly carcinogenic and damaging to human organs.
The average snore is said to come in at about 40 decibels, which is the equivalent of a fridge humming. When put like that, it sounds innocuous enough, until you’re the person lying awake beside a human refrigerator. People who have to endure heavy snorers are also at risk of extreme fatigue throughout the day as a result of not getting a decent nights sleep.
There are small ways we can limit our exposure to traffic pollutants on a day to day basis.
Professor Jorgen Vesbo, said
“We cannot stop breathing polluted air but we can limit our exposure. Even walking a metre from the kerb or taking a back street does make a difference”
Researchers are now keen to study measure pollution levels in different areas and see if it links in conclusively with sleep disturbances.
