Association of occupational noise exposure and stress in automotive parts manufacturing workers
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The objective of this study was to study occupational noise exposure and personal factors associated with health outcomes, stress, and cortisol levels. This study included 148 automotive parts manufacturing workers. Questionnaires were used to collect general data and assess stress levels. Noise measurements and samples of cortisol in the urine were taken. It is found that the workers exposed to noise ≥80 dBA had more anxiety, concern, phobias, and depression than those exposed to lower levels. Individuals with mental illnesses had higher cortisol levels. Some stress symptoms were associated with higher cortisol levels. People exposed to noise ≥80 dBA showed a higher prevalence of comorbidities related to obesity, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension than those exposed to noise <80 dBA. In conclusion, noise at work has a lower impact on workers than factors such as sex or stress level. However, this study found an association between stress symptoms and perceived stress with loud noise levels. Our findings point to occupational noise exposure as a potential stressor, with its effects exacerbating stress. Caution should be exercised, especially for workers who have personal traits that make them susceptible to stress.
Downloads
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
References
Amanipour, R. M., Zhu, X., Duvey, G., Celanire, S., Walton, J. P., and Frisina, R. D. (2018). Noise-induced hearing loss in mice: effects of high and low levels of noise trauma in CBA mice. In Proceedings of the 40th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBC), pp. 1210–1213. Honolulu, HI, USA.
Aydin, N., and Searchfield, G. D. (2019). Changes in tinnitus and physiological biomarkers of stress in response to short-term broadband noise and sounds of nature. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 46, 62–68.
Azodo, A. P., and Omokaro, I. (2019). Assessment of preferred maximum sound output intensity of personal audio devices on a recommended safety exposure time scale. Science, Engineering and Health Studies, 13(2), 93–100.
Baneshi, M. R., Pourakbari, R., and Abshahi, M. (2012). Investigation of the impact of noise exposure on blood pressure in tire manufacturing workers. ARYA Atherosclerosis Journal, 8, S137–S141.
Barbaresco, G. Q., Reis, A. V. P., Lopes, G. D. R., Boaventura, L. P., Castro, A. F., Vilanova, T. C. F., Júnior, E. C. D. C., Pires, K. C., Filho, R. P., and Pereira, B. B. (2019). Effects of environmental noise pollution on perceived stress and cortisol levels in street vendors. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part A, 82(5), 331–337.
Basner, M., Babisch, W., Davis, A., Brink, M., Clark, C., Janssen, S., and Stansfeld, S. (2014). Auditory and non-auditory effects of noise on health. The Lancet, 383(9925), 1325–1332.
Baudin, C., Lefèvre, M., Selander, J., Babisch, W., Cadum, E., Carlier, M.-C., Champelovier, P., Dimakopoulou, K., Huithuijs, D., Lambert, J., Laumon, B., Pershagen, G., Theorell, T., Velonaki, V., Hansell, A., and Evrard, A.-S. (2019). Saliva cortisol in relation to aircraft noise exposure: Pooled-analysis results from seven European countries. Environmental Health, 18, 102.
Bevan, R., Grantham-Hill, S., Bowen, R., Clayton, E., Grice, H., Venditti, H. C., Stickland, A., and Hill, C. M. (2019). Sleep quality and noise: Comparisons between hospital and home settings. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 104(2), 147–151.
Burns, K. N., Sun, K., Fobil, J. N., and Neitzel, R. L. (2016). Heart rate, stress, and occupational noise exposure among electronic waste recycling workers. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 13(1), 140.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). Defining Adult Overweight & Obesity. United States Department of Health & Human Services [Online URL: https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/basics/adult-defining. html] accessed on March 3, 2023.
Cohen, S. (1994). Perceived stress scale. Mind Garden. [Online URL: https://www.mindgarden.com/documents/PerceivedStressScale.pdf] accessed on March 3, 2023.
Chu, B., Marwaha, K., Sanvictores, T., and Ayers, D. (2023). Physiology, Stress Reaction. Treasure Island, FL: StatPearls Publishing.
Daiber, A., Lelieveld, J., Steven, S., Oelze, M., Kröller-Schön, S., Sørensen, M., and Münzel, T. (2019). The "exposome" concept - how environmental risk factors influence cardiovascular health. Acta Biochimica Polonica, 66(3), 269–283.
Elkin, A. (2013). Stress Management for Dummies, 2nd, Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Evans, G. W., and Johnson, D. (2000). Stress and open-office noise. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85(5), 779–783.
Graham, K., Searle, A., Van Hooff, M., Lawrence-Wood, E., and McFarlane, A. (2020). The value of physical symptoms in screening for posttraumatic stress disorder in the military. Assessment, 27(6), 1139–1150.
Hahad, O., Prochaska, J. H., Daiber, A., and Muenzel, T. (2019). Environmental noise-induced effects on stress hormones, oxidative stress, and vascular dysfunction: Key factors in the relationship between cerebrocardiovascular and psychological disorders. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2019, 4623109.
Hegewald, J., Schubert, M., Freiberg, A., Starke, K. R., Augustin, F., Riedel-Heller, S. G., Zeeb, H., and Seidler, A. (2020). Traffic noise and mental health: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(17), 6175.
International Electrotechnical Commission. (2002). International Standard IEC 61672-1 Electroacoustics Sound level meters, Part 1: Specifications [Online URL: https://webstore.iec.ch/preview/info_iec61672-1% 7Bed1.0%7Den_d.pdf] accessed on March 3, 2023.
Jafari, M. J., Khosrowabadi, R., Khodakarim, S., Khodagholi, F., and Mohammadian, F. (2021). The effects of combined exposure to noise and heat on human salivary cortisol and blood pressure. International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 27(3), 831–839.
Jafari, Z., Mehla, J., Kolb, B. E., and Mohajerani, M. H. (2017). Prenatal noise stress impairs HPA axis and cognitive performance in mice. Scientific Reports, 7(1), 10560.
Juster, R.-P., Raymond, C., Desrochers, A. B., Bourdon, O., Durand, N., Wan, N., Pruessner, C. J., and Lupien, S. J. (2016). Sex hormones adjust "sex-specific" reactive and diurnal cortisol profiles. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 63, 282–290.
Karachaliou, C.-E., Koukouvinos, G., Goustouridis, D., Raptis, I., Kakabakos, S., Petrou, P., and Livaniou, E. (2023). Cortisol immunosensors: A literature review. Biosensors, 13(2), 285.
Khosravipour, M., Abdollahzad, H., Khosravi, F., Rezaei, M., Mohammadi Sarableh, H., and Moradi, Z. (2020). The association of occupational noises and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome. Annals of Work Exposures and Health, 64(5), 514–521.
Landegger, L. D., Vasilijic, S., Fujita, T., Soares, V. Y., Seist, R., Xu, L., and Stankovic, K. M. (2019). Cytokine levels in inner ear fluid of young and aged mice as molecular biomarkers of noise-induced hearing loss. Frontiers in Neurology, 10, 977.
Lee, S. C., Hong, J. Y., and Jeon, J. Y. (2015). Effects of acoustic characteristics of combined construction noise on annoyance. Building and Environment, 92, 657–667.
LENCE Ultra Cortisol Detection Kit. (2012). Technical data sheet. PerkinElmer. [Online URL: https:// www.perkinelmer.com/searchresult?searchName=Ultra%2520Cortisol%2520Detection%2520Kit%2520TECHNICAL%2520DATA%2520SHEET&_csrf=a166edd5-22a7-42f1-b2f6-2fd3318b9cc9] accessed on May 3, 2022.
Li, W., Ruan, W., Yi, G., Chen, Z., and Wang, D. (2021). Association of noise exposure with risk of metabolic syndrome: Evidence from 44,698 individuals. Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice, 178, 108944.
Li, X., Dong, Q., Wang, B., Song, H., Wang, S., and Zhu, B. (2019). The influence of occupational noise exposure on cardiovascular and hearing conditions among industrial workers. Scientific Reports, 9(1), 11524.
Lundberg, U., and Frankenhaeuser, M. (1999). Stress and workload of men and women in high-ranking positions. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 4(2), 142–151.
Münzel, T., Schmidt, F. P., Steven, S., Herzog, J., Daiber, A., and Sørensen, M. (2018). Environmental noise and the cardiovascular system. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 71(6), 688–697.
Nicolaides, N. C., Kyratzi, E., Lamprokostopoulou, A., Chrousos, G. P., and Charmandari, E. (2015). Stress, the stress system and the role of glucocorticoids. Neuroimmunomodulation, 22(1–2), 6–19.
Pedersen, E. (2015). City dweller responses to multiple stressors intruding into their homes: Noise, light, odour, and vibration. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 12(3), 3246–3263.
Pezeshki, M. Z., Shadman, A., Alizadeh, M., Hakimi, S., and Heidari, F. (2017). Validity and reliability of the questionnaire for assessing women’s reproductive history in Azar cohort study. Journal of Caring Sciences, 6(2), 183–186.
Powell, T., and Enright, S. (2015). Anxiety and Stress Management, London: Routledge.
Radun, J., Maula, H., Rajala, V., Scheinin, M., and Hongisto, V. (2021). Speech is special: The stress effects of speech, noise, and silence during tasks requiring concentration. Indoor Air Journal, 31(1), 264–274.
Rod, N. H., Grønbaek, M., Schnohr, P., Prescott, E., and Kristensen, T. S. (2009). Perceived stress as a risk factor for changes in health behaviour and cardiac risk profile: A longitudinal study. Journal of Internal Medicine, 266(5), 467–475.
Satsangi, A. K., and Brugnoli, M. P. (2018). Anxiety and psychosomatic symptoms in palliative care: From neuro-psychobiological response to stress, to symptoms' management with clinical hypnosis and meditative states. Annals of Palliative Medicine, 7(1), 75–111.
Selander, J., Bluhm, G., Theorell, T., Pershagen, G., Babisch, W., Seiffert, I., Houthuijs, D., Breugelmans , O., Vigna-Taglianti , F., Antoniotti, M. C., Velonakis, E., Davou, E., Dudley, M.-L., and Järup, L. (2009). Saliva cortisol and exposure to aircraft noise in six European countries. Environmental Health Perspectives, 117(11), 1713–1717.
Sriopas, A., Chapman, R. S., Sutammasa, S., and Siriwong, W. (2017). Occupational noise‐induced hearing loss in auto part factory workers in welding units in Thailand. Journal of Occupational Health, 59(1), 55–62.
Taylor, J. M. (2015). Psychometric analysis of the ten-item perceived stress scale. Psychological Assessment, 27(1), 90–101.
Themann, C. L., and Masterson, E. A. (2019). Occupational noise exposure: A review of its effects, epidemiology, and impact with recommendations for reducing its burden. The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 146(5), 3879.
Wardell, J. D., Kempe, T., Rapinda, K. K., Single, A., Bilevicius, E., Frohlich, J. R. Hendershot, C. S., and Keough, M. T. (2020). Drinking to cope during COVID‐19 pandemic: The role of external and internal factors in coping motive pathways to alcohol use, solitary drinking, and alcohol problems. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 44(10), 2073–2083.
Yadav, O. P., Sarkar, A., Shan, D., Rahman, A., and Moro, L. (2021). Occupational noise exposure and health impacts among fish harvesters: A systematic review. International Maritime Health, 72(3), 199–205.
Zefferino, R., Di Gioia, S., and Conese, M. (2021). Molecular links between endocrine, nervous and immune system during chronic stress. Brain and Behavior, 11(2), e01960.