3. Non-auditory effects of noise

3.1 Physiological stress

In addition to its auditory effects, noise causes a large number of physiological changes. The most important question concerning these reactions is whether they are dangerous to health, or whether they are fully compensated for by the body's adaptive capacities. In other words, can noise be considered stress? (The term covers both the stressing action and the agent that causes this action). Stress is classically defined as a state of arousal likely to have harmful effects on health. It generally leads to a response known as the adaptation syndrome.