Need to Improve Your Sleep? Turn On the White Noise

The benefits of white noise for sleeping (adults and children)

Before I go into the benefits and the science behind white noise, I’m going to tell you how it changed my life. I went from a sleep-deprived person (with all it implicates) to a full-time sleeper.

I have Tinnitus, meaning I have, 24/7, a high pitch ringing in my brain. It’s as maddening as it sounds.

On bad days, Tinnitus has a severe impact on my life: not only affects my hearing (the ringing is so loud I can’t hear exterior sounds), my ability to focus, my mood and, of course, it ruins my sleep.

There is no cure or treatment for Tinnitus, the best strategy is to keep the mind busy — the more you focus on the noise, the worse it feels. The best is to engage in relaxing activities and to always be surrounded by sound. Silence is the worse enemy of people suffering from Tinnitus. Our brain has to be focused on external noises, all the time. It’s so exhausting.

Each person copes with Tinnitus differently, but one thing is common among us: white noise offers relieve.

I first tried white noise in an audiology appointment. I was on my limit, giving up on my fight with Tinnitus. But then, when I used the white noise generators (similar to hearing aids) the doctor gave me, I collapsed, crying of happiness and surrender. I was saved from the nightmare of a constant high pitch noise in my brain. For the first time in months, I had a resemblance of silence.

Minutes later, however, I understood white noise didn’t eliminate Tinnitus, it only masks the ringing, throws it to the back of my head. But I was happy anyway: the ringing wasn’t so loud, nor incapacitating. I had the opportunity to start living again.

Since that day, two years ago, I never stopped using white noise: during the day I use one generator, and at night I put white noise on the speaker, to help me fall asleep and promote a good night of sleep.

But white noise is beneficial not only for people suffering from Tinnitus: it helps everybody, from babies to adults.

Now that I told you about my personal experience with white noise, I’ll present you the science behind it, and how it can help adults and children to have a better night of sleep.

What is white noise?

For a better understanding of the benefits of white noise, it’s important to know what it is: what makes white noise a calmer noise than any other.

Each sound we hear is made of waves and each wave has a frequency: low or high. White noise is a combination of all frequencies. The same way white colour is a combination of all the colours of the spectrum, white noise is a combination of every audible frequency.

White noise is also known as static noise(listen to it here).

The consistency of the white noise makes it very effective masking other noises - the reason why it is a calming sound. When you listen to it, you are more focused, with less probability of being distracted by sudden noises in your surroundings.

How white noise benefits your sleep

White noise has several benefits, but the most popular and scientifically proven is the effectiveness to improve sleep quality. There are several reasons for that:

Distracts the brain and buffers other sounds

If you’re standing in a quiet room, you’ll probably be more alert, you’ll react to any trace of sound. But if you turn on white noise, your mind will focus on it, without being so easily distracted by other sounds.

By buffering ambient distracting noises, it will be more probable you won’t wake up during the night. You can now have a peaceful night of sleep.

There are several studies proving the efficiency of using white noise for sleep, like this one with patients in critical care. The researchers concluded that “the use of white noise is recommended as a method for masking environmental noises, improving sleep, and maintaining sleep in the coronary care unit”.

Researchers of the study The influence of white noise on sleep in subjects exposed to ICU noise explored the hypothesis if adding white noise to the noisy ICU would help patients sleep better. Their conclusions were positive: patients exposed to white noise on top of other noises had a lower rate of wakenings, their sleep quality improved.

Relieves sleeping disorder

White noise is an effective tool for people suffering from insomnia, as it helps combat sleeplessness or restlessness.

In 2017, an experiment made with insomniacs who were exposed to broadband sound (white noise falls into this category), showed that 38% fell asleep faster and experienced better sleep quality.

White Noise for Babies

The benefits of white noise are also effective for children, since birth. It has a calming effect not only on sleeping time but also during feeding sessions.

In a 1990 study - White noise and sleep induction — researchers found that 80% of babies fell asleep within five minutes while listening to white noise.

How to Generate White Noise

There are several ways to include white noise in your surroundings, some of them cost-free. Using white noise, always consider the recommended noise limit: 50 decibels.

• Apps: there’s a large variety of white noise apps. Some offer extensive noise and natural sound selection, and even breathing exercises (I use this one, it’s free), others are more limited.
• Youtube: if you search for white noise you’ll find lots of tracks, up to ten hours of duration, ensuring it plays all night.
• Fans: Electric fans produce a soothing whirr that is similar to white noise.
• Bluetooth Pillow: If like me, you need white noise close to your ears, this is a good option. You connect your app or youtube playlist to your pillow and enjoy the calming sound of white noise under your head.
• Radio: set the frequency between two stations until you hear the static sound.
• White noise Machine: these are used in white noise therapy, most of them generate several colours on the noise spectrum. Additionally, many come equipped with a collection of natural and ambient sounds. The prices will vary according to the brand and properties.

Now that you’ve read about its benefits, why not improve your sleep by turning white noise on at night?

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