Editorial

[...]to the changing appraisal of endocrine noise effects, our knowledge of cardiovascular effects of chronic traffic noise exposure is sufficiently consolidated to permit the formulation of preventive noise limits. Since in the literature on the relationship of traffic noise and cardiovascular risk, always the mean outdoor noise level was assessed, noise limits should be based on the outdoor mean noise level, although, from the theoretical point of view, the indoor noise level is the biological most relevant load. FNx01 From the point of view of preventive medicine, damage to health is to be expected from aircraft noise exposures of 60 dB(A) in the daytime and 50 dB(A) at night.