Data from the Apple Hearing Study suggests that 1 in 3 Americans are exposed to harmful levels of noise regularly. In observance of International Noise Awareness Day, University of Michigan researchers, in partnership with Apple, shared a blog post discussing noise exposure.
Analyzing noise exposure from Apple Watch data
The University of Michigan extrapolated data from 130,000 Apple Hearing Study volunteers who contributed readings from their Apple Watch between November 2019 and December 2022. Based on this data, it is estimated that 77 million adults in the United States are consistently exposed to high noise levels.
The World Health Organization and the United States Environmental Protection Agency state that an annual average noise exposure level of 70 decibels (dBA) is safe for hearing, but exposure above 70 dBA can result in hearing damage.
Researchers believe that people with repeated daily average noise exposures over 70 dBA likely have an annual noise exposure above 70 dBA, which can cause hearing issues, irritation, heart problems, and sleep disturbances, as well as impact mental health. The risk increases with higher noise levels and longer exposure times.
Apple Watch noise detection and health impact
The Apple Watch includes a built-in feature for detecting environmental sound levels, collecting data to calculate an average daily environmental sound exposure level. This information can be found in the Hearing section of the Health app.
The Health app indicates whether average noise exposure levels are below 75 dB and “OK” or if repeated exposure to higher sound levels may affect health. At 80 dB, 40 hours of exposure over seven days could cause damage, but at 120 dB, just 14 seconds over seven days may cause problems. The Apple Watch can send alerts when it detects harmful noise levels, allowing users to move to quieter locations.
The highest noise pollution levels were experienced by people in Puerto Rico, Delaware, Rhode Island, Mississippi, and Connecticut. Adults aged 35 to 44 were more likely to be exposed to high noise levels compared to other age groups.
Further information about the study is available in the full blog post on the University of Michigan website. To reduce hearing damage, researchers recommend that individuals regularly exposed to excessive noise pollution move away from noisy areas, take “quiet breaks,” purchase quiet appliances, and wear ear muffs or ear plugs when possible.
