Studies have found that regular exposure to traffic noise raises blood pressure and may increase the risk of heart disease and stroke, and that nighttime traffic noise interrupts sleep and impairs physical performance in the morning. While you can’t reroute the highway or move to the sticks, you can make a concerted effort to close windows, turn off the TV and the stereo, put on a fan or other white noise machine, and create as much serenity in your bedroom as possible before you go to bed. If there’s no way to block out the sounds of cars whizzing by, consider using earplugs.

adapted from wholeliving.com, Oct. 2011

Posted in Sleep Habits, sleep