Health Effects of Urban Sounds beyond Noise: Systematic Review

Noise is a known risk factor for multiple health outcomes, especially in cities, and noise protection is an established mitigation measure. The exclusive focus on noise protection by health research and policy ignores an acoustic quality approach in favor of a health promoting urban environment approach. The acoustic environment comprises far more qualities, such as perception-based qualities, sound sources and frequency-based sound properties. This raises the fundamental issue of how to develop a healthy acoustic environment. The aim here is to outline current research investigating associations between health…