White Noise - help noises when falling asleep ?

Noise-related problems falling asleep and staying asleep are widespread because our sense of hearing is always active, even while we sleep. Here you can find out how the famous "white noise" affects our body and brain and whether sounds like white noise, pink noise and brown noise can improve relaxation and sleep.

Table of contents

1. Hearing during sleep
2. What is White Noise?
3. What effect does white noise have?
4. How does white noise affect sleep?
5. Tips: White noise for better sleep
6. White, Pink & Brown – All noise signals at a glance
7. Conclusion

Nocturnal neighbors, barking dogs or the constant snoring of a peacefully sleeping partner – nighttime noise and disturbing ambient sounds are a common reason for nighttime awakening, sleep disorders and difficulty falling asleep. An increasingly popular way to make it easier to fall asleep and to reduce the disturbing effect of nighttime noise is to listen to so-called white noise – in English: White noise. How can or should this work?

1. Hearing during sleep

Our ears never sleep! At night, not only the brain is running at full speed, but also many of our senses remain active. Our sensitive hearing is particularly sensitive and constantly reacts to acoustic stimuli from our environment during sleep and while falling asleep. Persistent noise, sudden sounds or other strong acoustic signals cause the nervous system to be activated at night and can therefore prevent a peaceful and undisturbed sleep.

The decisive factor is how a noise is ultimately processed and evaluated in the brain. The brain is capable of filtering out certain sounds from a sound environment and blocking out less important signals. However, when a noise stands out from an otherwise quiet environment, the brain is quickly put on alert, which hinders the process of falling asleep or wakes us up.

The human ear covers a frequency range of approximately 20 to 20,000 Hertz. Depending on the sleep phase Depending on the state of our body, our hearing sensitivity to stimuli can vary. In deep sleep, we don't even really perceive many sounds because our body is focused on regeneration and recovery. In REM sleep, however, our sense of hearing is more sensitive because our brain is very active during this time and reacts faster and more strongly to acoustic stimuli in the environment. In order to fall asleep easily and sleep through the night without being disturbed, a generally quiet sleeping environment is recommended.

2. What is white noise?

White noise can be described as a monotonous, artificially generated noise that consists of a combination of tones of all frequencies that humans can perceive at the same intensity. This means that many different sounds are layered on top of each other, creating a dense, indefinable noise that sounds a bit like a rushing waterfall or when no station is tuned in on the radio or television.

3. What effect does white noise have?

Although the constant white noise is constantly perceived through the ears, the brain usually rates it as being of little relevance and after a short time most people no longer consciously perceive it at all.Due to the constant, but not too demanding, impulses to the ear, our brain relaxes more and more and simply blocks out the monotonous noise, which lowers the hearing threshold for other (disturbing) noises. This is because white noise creates an overall "loud" sound environment in which sudden noise stands out less. This makes us less sensitive to the noises that we perceive as negative and allows our brain to calm down more easily.

4. How does white noise affect sleep?

Numerous scientific studies show that white noise can lead to more peace and relaxation and is effective against stress symptoms such as headaches or inner restlessness. This not only improves our resistance to stress and ability to concentrate during the day, but also improves the conditions for a restful sleep.

Especially during the process of falling asleep and throughout the rest of the night, white noise can help to neutralize disturbing noise from the sleeping environment and prevent interruptions to sleep caused by sudden noises. In this way, we can protect our brain from stress, encourage a peaceful fall asleep and also support sleeping through the night.

5. White Noise, Pink Noise, Brown Noise – Noise Signals at a Glance

Whether we really find the monotonous sounds pleasant and helpful varies from person to person. White noise is very popular as a sleep aid because it sounds uniform and very dense overall. But there are other noise signals that have a similarly positive effect on our body, brain and nervous system and help you sleep better. They differ primarily in the frequency spectrum used.

White Noise

White noise includes sounds of all frequencies from a frequency range of about 20 to 20,000 Hertz, which are superimposed at the same volume. The result is an indefinable noise of high, medium and low tones that can be compared to the sound of heavy rain, waterfalls, a humming machine or the well-known "TV interference signal".

Pink Noise

Pink noise is very similar to white noise and differs only in that the high frequencies are used more quietly than the low ones. Pink noise sounds a little deeper and less intense than white noise, which some people find more pleasant and calming.

The sound of rain trickling is comparable, for example. With the window open, it sounds similar to white noise; with the window closed, it is more like pink noise.

Brown Noise / Red Noise

Brown or red noise sounds even deeper than pink or white noise and is created by further reducing the volume of sounds in the high and mid frequency range. The comparatively deeper and darker sounding noise is often compared to the sound of calm ocean surf or a thunderstorm.

6. Tips: White noise to improve sleep

You can benefit from the proven positive effects of noise signals especially in the evening or while falling asleep. You can find special sleep sounds on YouTube, Spotify, in our sleep SOUNDS! and other platforms or you can use a special "noise generator". To help you fall asleep and sleep through the night, we have put together a few tips for you.

By the way: Find out whether music can also have a positive effect on falling asleep here.

#1 Speakers vs. Headphones

If you want to listen to music, a podcast or one of the noise signals to fall asleep, it is of course advisable to use a speaker instead of headphones to prevent unpleasant pressure on the ears or tangled headphone cables during the night.

#2 Sleep Use timer

Use a Sleep Timer to automatically stop playback of videos or audio tracks or reduce the volume after a certain time. This way you can fall asleep slowly without worrying and you don't have to Smartphone, laptop or speakers.

#3 Adjust the volume correctly

The volume at which the white, pink or brown noise sounds pleasant to you depends on your individual circumstances. Make sure that it is not too loud, but also not too quiet. Noise that is too loud can still be perceived as disturbing during sleep, whereas a volume that is too low can lead to us no longer being able to perceive the white noise at all and the positive effects fail to occur.

7. Conclusion

• Our hearing is also very active during sleep, which is why nighttime noise is a common reason for problems falling asleep and staying asleep

• White noise is a monotonous sound that can calm the body, brain and nervous system and mask disturbing noise

• White noise has been proven to help reduce stress, make it easier to fall asleep and promote sleeping through the night

• In addition to white noise, pink noise and brown noise also have a positive effect on stress, relaxation and sleep