Your commute is more dangerous than previously realized, new research shows. One simple change could combat the mental toll

Road traffic creates noise pollution that has proven a global health hazard in our increasingly industrialized world. Existing research has tied it to everything from sleep disturbances and decreased work performance, to high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. Now scientists at the University of the West of England in Bristol, U.K., have identified an association between such man-made sounds and increased stress and anxiety. What’s more, they showed that traffic noise stifles the calming, pleasing effects of nature sounds. Their findings were published Nov. 27 in the journal PLOS One.

The study involved nearly 70 people who were asked to watch a minute-long “stressor video” before rating their mood—a combination of stress, anxiety, and hedonic tone, or pleasure. Then they listened to a three-minute-long audio clip and reevaluated their feelings. Each participant completed the experiment three times, responding to these sounds after watching a video:

1. Nature soundscape with birdsong, recorded at sunrise in West Sussex, U.K.
2. Same soundscape with 20-mph traffic noise, recorded during morning rush hour in Bath, U.K.
3. Same soundscape with 40-mph traffic noise, recorded during morning rush hour in Bath, U.K.

Compared to their initial stressor-induced emotions, study subjects reported increased pleasure and reduced stress and anxiety after listening to each of the three soundscapes. How much their mood improved, though, varied by audio clip.

The nature soundscape alone was linked to the lowest average stress and anxiety levels, which the study authors noted supports previous research on natural noise as a balm for mental fatigue. Even so, participants’ stress and anxiety crept back up when the 20-mph traffic sounds were added, and increased again with the 40-mph traffic sounds included. Pleasure, which researchers considered a marker of positive mood, increased when people listened to nature sounds alone but declined following the 40-mph recording.

“Our study shows that listening to natural soundscapes can reduce stress and anxiety, and that anthropogenic sounds such as traffic noise can mask potential positive impacts,” the authors said in a news release about their research. “Reducing traffic speeds in cities is therefore an important step toward more people experiencing the positive effects of nature on their health and wellbeing.”

In addition to highlighting the negative effects of urban development and expansion on environmental conservation, the study urges policymakers to incorporate greenspaces to boost city residents’ mental and physical health.

A lack of demographic diversity is among the study’s limitations; most subjects were white, British, female undergraduate students living and working in urban areas. They ranged in age from 18 to 42. The researchers noted that future studies could explore how people’s sociocultural backgrounds influence their responses to the soundscapes, and whether more biodiverse soundscapes further improve mood. Because participants who had been diagnosed with or were taking prescribed medication for psychiatric conditions such as anxiety and depression were excluded, the study didn’t gauge how people with mood disorders might react to nature and traffic soundscapes.

How to tune in to nature sounds

Though there may be less of it in rural areas, road traffic noise is difficult to completely escape. Yet whether you’re acutely aware of the racket’s impact on your mood or welcome it as comforting background noise, there are everyday ways to reap the mental health benefits of nature sounds:

• Listen to recordings of nature sounds. Perhaps the quickest fix for city-dwellers. You could listen to a few minutes here and there during workday breaks, or play the noises through the night to create a peaceful sleeping environment.
• Take forest baths. They don’t have to be in an actual forest; you might go for mindful strolls through your nearest park.
• Exercise outdoors. Weather permitting, swap the treadmill for the sidewalk or try your hand at outdoor yoga.
• Bring your hobbies outside. Even as winter approaches, consider bundling up and listening to nature as you read, journal, draw, paint, knit, and more.
• Do a nature-themed grounding exercise. You may be familiar with the 5-4-3-2-1 coping technique for anxiety, in which you name five things you see, four you can touch, three you can hear, two you can smell, and one you can taste. For No. 3, try to pick out nature sounds instead of traffic noises, such as a gust of wind against a windowpane or leaves skittering across the sidewalk.
• Meditate in nature. If you can’t practice al fresco, put on your headphones and dive into a guided nature meditation.

If you need immediate mental health support, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

For more on mental health:

• The mental health paradox: Amid the loneliness epidemic, most say they need alone time to feel better this holiday season
• One of the best things you can do for your mental health and well-being, according to a psychologist who counsels U.S. Olympians
• Antidepressant not working? AI may do a better job than your doctor in matching you with the best medicine
• COVID can cause mental illness—but being vaccinated helps, new study shows
• Hidden recession? Mental illness costs the U.S. $282 billion annually