Noise is America’ s most widespread ______ .

Noise or unwanted sound is America’ s most widespread nuisance. But noise is more than just a nuisance. It constitutes a real and present danger to people’ s health. Day and night, at home, at work, and at play, noise can produce serious physical and psychological stress. No one is unaffected by this stress. Though we seem to adjust to noise by ignoring it, the ear, in fact, never closes and the body still responds--sometimes with extreme tension, as to a strange sound in the night. The annoyance we feel when faced with noise is the most common outward symptom of the stress building up inside us. Indeed, because irritability is so apparent, legislators have made public annoyance the basis of many noise reducing programs. The more subtle and more serious health hazards associated with stress caused by noise traditionally have been given much less attention.