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Using white noise for your little one’s sleep

Written by Claire Burgess, Family Consultant

 
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White noise is something which is mentioned a great deal when talking about sleep and especially the sleep of babies and young children.  

It’s important to note that while white noise can help to settle your little one for sleep it often needs to be used alongside other approaches such as a pre-sleep time routine, which white noise can form a part of.  Have a look at our other sleep blogs which include lots of information about sleep for young babies, sleep associations, early waking, naps and much more.

What is white noise?

White noise is made up of low, medium and high frequency sounds played together at the same intensity level and many people like to fall to sleep to it.  White noise makes a ‘shh’ sound which can be soothing and reassuring for many babies and children…and even some adults.  White noise also helps to mask other sounds in the environment, for example noisy pipes, boilers kicking in, noisy older or younger siblings, parent(s) getting up early or coming in late.  True white noise also creates a barrier to sudden sounds or sound changes.  

Examples of white noise can be:

  • Fans

  • Radio or TV static

  • Air conditioner hum

What about pink noise?

You may have also heard of pink noise and it might be the case that your baby or child actually prefers pink noise over white.  Pink noise is a blend of more low-frequency tones and softer high-frequency tones.  It is felt that pink noise can be more beneficial in relation to sleep as it can help to reduce brain wave activity. There is some thought that pink noise will help to extend sleep duration and improve overall sleep quality. 

Examples of pink noise can be:

  • Rain 

  • Wind

  • Heartbeat

It is very much personal preference as to which sound an individual prefers and this is the same for our children.  Some prefer the higher frequency sounds of white noise and some will prefer the lower frequency sounds of pink noise. It might be a case of trying the differing sounds with your little one to see if you can find their preference.

Interestingly, black noise is the term used to describe silence.

I need to also note here that not all babies or children like white (or pink) noise or respond its use in a positive way, it is not for everyone.  If you would like to try it with your baby then try it out over 3-4 days for all sleep times before making a decision as to whether your little one does or doesn’t respond to its use – a one time use will not give you a true indication.

 
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How should I use white noise?

  • First and most importantly, your white noise machine needs to be set at an appropriate volume for your little one, normally work on the volume being similar to that of a running shower.   It is important that any devices are used appropriately and following the manufacturer’s advice. 

  • Some products on the market can switch off after 30-60 minutes and then only come back on if they sense the child crying or moving.  However, the conditions that we fall asleep to need to be consistent through the night in order to provide us with settled sleep.  We all naturally rouse and slightly wake through the night (this is normal for us and our children) and tend to roll over and fall back to sleep, but if our sleep conditions have changed, such as if the white noise we fell to sleep with has stopped, it is likely that we will then fully wake in order to find out where it has gone.  In this respect, if you are using white noise it needs to be played continuously throughout the night and during naps.

  • The white noise device shouldn’t be directly in the cot, under the cot or by your little one’s head.  Putting the device in the room between the door and the cot can be an ideal position but this will depend on the room layout.  If this is not possible for you then it is important to make sure that it’s not directly next to your baby or child. 

  • If your machine is plugged in, it is important to ensure that any cables etc are out of the reach of your little one.

  • Using apps on devices such as and ipad is fine, but try to avoid using it if the device emits any light into the room as this can light actually effect sleep - using a device without any light is preferable.  In addition, the volume on a device like this is not always the same as on a specific white noise machine; as mentioned previously it is really important that the volume of the white noise is not too loud as it can damage your little one’s hearing if played too loud. 

  • It can work well to turn your white noise on when you are having that cuddle before putting your little one in their cot or bed so that it starts an association that it is bedtime.  Always then turn the white noise off when you are getting your little one up from their nap or when they have woken up in morning and ready to start their day.  This again gives the clear message that white noise is for sleep.

Will my baby need white noise forever?

This can often be a worry for so many that if you start to use white noise this creates a sleep association that you can never break.  This however is not the case; white noise can be a good sleep association as it is something which can be really helpful when staying away from home, or when out and about in the pram etc as you can take your portable device with you.  For some children (and even adults) they find having white noise to sleep helpful if they don’t sleep well in silence. If you decide as your baby or child is getting older that you no longer want to use the white noise weaning them off it can be an easy thing to achieve.

Weaning off white noise

If you make the decision to wean your little one off the white noise this can be achieved in a gentle way.  Start by using white noise as usual, but gradually, over every 2-3 nights, reduce the sound of the machine slightly so it is not really noticeable by your little one.  Do this over 1-2 weeks - if you find that they are noticing the sound reducing then just pause at this volume level for a couple of extra days to give them time to adjust and then start to reduce again until you get to the point where you can’t hear the white noise any longer. 

 
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Resources

There are a large number of white noise machines on the market and it can be overwhelming.  

There are, for example,  machines which are specifically aimed at the baby and toddler market as they are shaped as animals etc.  If you decide that this type of machine will work for you it is really important to go with ones which offer the continuous play throughout the night rather than one which stops after 30/60 mins and then only switches back on when your little one cries or stirs.  Another thing with these types of machine is that they can tend to run out of battery very quickly, so have a good supply of batteries or look for options which are rechargeable. 

An alternative to these are actual white noise machines which have different sound functions (accommodating the pink or white noise frequencies).  It’s good to choose something which is portable and rechargeable. We have some examples on our Amazon Storefront

In summary

 Make sure that:

  • White noise plays throughout the night and for the duration of naps.

  • The machine is set at an appropriate volume for your little one.

  • The machine doesn’t emit any light.

  •  The machine isn’t too close to your little one’s head and not in the cot or bed.

  •  Any wires are out of reach of your little one.

  • You try white noise for 3-4 days to see if it is going to be beneficial for your little one.

  • You test which noise is best suited to your little one, it could be white, pink or no noise at all. 

For more information about sleep you might be interested in ‘Your Guide to Sleep’ - a step-by-step video guide and our other sleep blogs.

Don’t forget that we also offer parent consultations should you need support with anything from sleep to behaviour and so much more! Details of the packages we offer can be found here.

We also have a podcast - ‘Newborn to Teen and Everything in Between’ - listen here.

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