Which of the following is not the adverse health effect of noise pollution?

Appeared in: UPPSC 2017

Explanation

Noise pollution is a known cause of sleep disturbances, leading to difficulty falling asleep, frequent awakenings, and reduced sleep quality.
The physiological stress response to noise is contrary to promoting deep, restful, or excessive sleep.
Conditions caused by noise pollution include insomnia and fatigue from lack of sleep, which is the opposite of excess sleep (hypersomnia).

Option A: Hearing loss is one of the most direct and well-established adverse effects of chronic exposure to high levels of noise.
Option B: Loss of concentration is a significant non-auditory, psychological effect of noise pollution, as it impairs cognitive performance and attention.
Option C: An increase in blood pressure is a documented cardiovascular effect of noise exposure, resulting from the body's physiological stress response.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Adverse health effects of noise pollution as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Nurses play a crucial role in managing the hospital environment to promote patient healing. This includes minimizing noise from alarms, equipment, and staff conversations, as excessive noise can lead to ICU psychosis, sleep deprivation, and hypertension in patients.
Patient education on occupational hazards should include information about noise-induced hearing loss and the importance of using protective gear (like earplugs or earmuffs) in noisy work environments.
What if the question was about acute, high-decibel noise exposure (e.g., an explosion)? The primary concern would shift to immediate, severe effects like tympanic membrane rupture and permanent deafness, in addition to the acute stress response.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the negative keyword 'not' in the question stem. This means you are looking for the option that is NOT an effect of noise pollution.
Recall or look up the known health consequences of noise pollution. Categorize them into auditory (hearing-related) and non-auditory (cardiovascular, psychological, etc.) effects.
Evaluate each option against this knowledge.
Option A (Hearing loss) is a classic auditory effect.
Option B (Loss of concentration) is a known psychological effect.
Option C (Increase in blood pressure) is a known cardiovascular effect.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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E6 Comprehensive Textbook of Community Health NursingShyamala D part 1 (pp 26-389 of 389) p. 127-129

E6 Parks TextBook of Preventive & Social Medicine part 2 — Subpart B (pp 233-449 of 464) pp. 60-62, 59-61

Practise the full UPPSC 2017

Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.