Use BBC.com or the new BBC App to listen to BBC podcasts, Radio 4 and the World Service outside the UK.

Find out how to listen to other BBC stations

Episode details

World Service,15 Mar 2025,49 mins

LOUD: Is noise an invisible killer?

The Documentary

Available for over a year

BBC health correspondent James Gallagher investigates how our noisy world is damaging our health. He finds out why noise increases our risk of health problems, like heart attacks, sleep problems and anxiety, and can even affect how long we live. James spends two days in Barcelona – one of the noisiest cities in Europe – to meet the people whose health is being ruined by noise and the scientists and doctors trying to solve the problem. He also visits London to be experimented on in a lab to find out how noise changes the body, and hears from Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, one of the loudest places on the planet. James discovers that even when we think we’ve tuned out loud noise it can still be damaging our health and why we all need to start paying attention to the noise around us. Presenter: James Gallagher Producer: Gerry Holt Dhaka reporting: Salman Saeed Content editor: Martin Smith Production co-ordinator: Jana Bennett- Holesworth (Photo: A woman clasps her ears as she watches traffic rushing by. Credit: Getty Images)

Programme Website
More episodes