I frequently hear parents employing white noise applications or devices to calm their young children in my practise. However, how does Pink Noise fare and does it work?

The idea is that white noise may remind infants of their time in the womb, when their mother’s tummy veiled and insulated them from outside disturbances. It’s possible that the infant comes to link these noises with the peaceful, natural environment of the womb.

At birth, a baby’s surroundings quickly transforms into an extremely exciting and noisy one, and the baby must adjust.

White noise can be used to cover up sudden fluctuations in sound, give the brain the advantages of a more stable acoustic environment, and ultimately promote better sleep for your infant.

While White Noise machines are the most popular, less well known research suggests that Pink Noise may be healthier for babies because it has longer-term advantages.

WHITE NOISE:

The sound is white and resembles a radio tuned to an unused frequency. There is a lot of proof that white noise is helpful at lulling people to sleep. The continual ambient noise it produces helps to block out other sounds, like a car door slamming outside, that could wake the baby up or prevent them from falling asleep in the first place.

However, because it is equally powerful at all human-audible frequencies, it frequently sounds high pitched. That’s because when we hear a certain sound, our brain amplifies the higher-pitched portion of the sound, making it feel louder than it actually is. However, some people may find that this high-pitched sound disturbs them rather than calms them.

White noise, but with diminished upper frequencies (think of it as white noise with the bass turned up).

PINK NOISE:

It is seen as being less disturbing to delicate hearing and more calming than white noise. Pink noise promotes a deeper, more restful slumber for you or your infant when you’re dozing. Pink noise has also been found in numerous studies to enhance both short- and long-term memory when used during sleeping.

Pink noise was synchronised with participants’ brainwaves in a study that was published in Neuron in 2013 so that it played when the participants’ brain activity indicated deep slumber. The pink noise was associated with deeper sleep for a longer period of time than the silence.

References:

Opioid Use in Pregnancy: A Review
White noise facilitates new-word learning from context
Noise as a sleep aid: A systematic review
Aviation Noise Impacts: State of the Science