Pros and Cons of Using White Noise Sound machine
Posted by Angela Brown on June 5th, 2019
Overview
For a parent with a newborn baby in the household, sleep can seem like only a dream. Even if you’re past the waking up every few hours for feedings phase, your baby might still have some trouble falling (or staying) asleep.
To help your baby sleep better at night, pediatricians often recommend relaxing activities, such as warm baths. When nothing seems to work, parents might turn to alternative measures like white noise.
While white noise might help your baby fall asleep, there are some potential long-term consequences.
It’s important to look at both the pros and cons before using white noise as your go-to baby sleeping measure.
What’s the deal with white noise for babies?
White noise refers to sounds that mask other sounds that might occur naturally in an environment. If you live in a city, for example, white noise could help block out noises associated with traffic.
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Specific sounds might be used to help encourage sleep regardless of environmental noises. Examples include rainforest or soothing beach sounds.
There are even machines specifically designed for use with infants. Some are equipped with instrumental lullabies or even a heartbeat noise that is used to mimic that of the mother.
A groundbreaking 1990 study published in the Archives of Disease in ChildhoodTrusted Source found that white noise could be helpful. Forty newborns were studied, and it was found that 80 percent were able to fall asleep after five minutes of hearing white noise.
The Pros and Cons of Using White Noise to Put Babies to Sleep
White noise for babies
Pros
Cons
Importance of sleep
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Overview
For a parent with a newborn baby in the household, sleep can seem like only a dream. Even if you’re past the waking up every few hours for feedings phase, your baby might still have some trouble falling (or staying) asleep.
To help your baby sleep better at night, pediatricians often recommend relaxing activities, such as warm baths. When nothing seems to work, parents might turn to alternative measures like white noise.
While white noise might help your baby fall asleep, there are some potential long-term consequences.
It’s important to look at both the pros and cons before using white noise as your go-to baby sleeping measure.
What’s the deal with white noise for babies?
White noise refers to sounds that mask other sounds that might occur naturally in an environment. If you live in a city, for example, white noise could help block out noises associated with traffic.
Specific sounds might be used to help encourage sleep regardless of environmental noises. Examples include rainforest or soothing beach sounds.
There are even machines specifically designed for use with infants. Some are equipped with instrumental lullabies or even a heartbeat noise that is used to mimic that of the mother.
A groundbreaking 1990 study published in the Archives of Disease in ChildhoodTrusted Source found that white noise could be helpful. Forty newborns were studied, and it was found that 80 percent were able to fall asleep after five minutes of hearing white noise.
The pros of white noise for babies
Babies may be able to fall asleep faster with white noise in the background.
White noise can block out household noise such as older siblings.
Some infant white noise machines have a heartbeat setting mimicking the mother, which may be comforting for newborns.
White noise may aid sleep
The most obvious benefit of white noise for babies is the fact that it could help them fall asleep. If you notice your baby tends to fall asleep at noisy times outside of regular nap time or bedtime, they might respond positively to white noise.
Your baby might be accustomed to being surrounded by noise, so a completely quiet environment could have the opposite effect when it comes time to sleep.
Sleep aids can mask household noises
White noise machines could also benefit families who have multiple children who are different ages.
For instance, if you have a baby who needs a nap, but another child who no longer takes naps, white noise can help block out noises of siblings to help your baby sleep better.
The cons of white noise for babies
White noise machines may exceed recommended noise limits for babies.
Babies can become dependent on white noise machines to be able to fall asleep.
Not all babies respond well to white noise.
Potential developmental problems
Despite the potential benefits, white noise doesn’t always offer risk-free peace and quiet.
In 2014, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) tested 14 white noise machines designed for infants. They found that all of them exceeded recommended noise limits, which is set at 50 decibels.
In addition to increased hearing problems, the study found that using white noise increased the risk of problems with language and speech development.
Based on the findings of the AAP, pediatricians recommend that any white noise machines should be placed at least 7 feet away (200 cm) from your baby’s crib. You should also keep the volume on the machine below the maximum volume setting.
Babies might become reliant on white noise
Babies who respond positively to white noise might sleep better at night and during naps, but only if the white noise is consistently available. This could be problematic if your baby is in a situation where they need to sleep and the sound machine is not with them.
Examples include vacations, a night at grandma’s house, or even day care. Such a scenario could become extremely disruptive for everyone involved.
source: healthline.com/health/parenting/white-noise-for-babies#cons
