Often, they experience sleep disruptions because of outside noise. To help, 18% of Americans use white-noise machines or apps, while nearly half use a fan at night. Our ears don’t stop working while we sleep. The brain filters noise, allowing important sounds—like fire alarms—to wake us up. Many of us are more sensitive, and every radiator clicks or car honk puts us on high alert. Is white noise the answer? white noise can hurt sleep by disrupting sleep cycles, at least initially. It also might mask important sounds (like a baby crying) or cause hearing loss. Three popular iPhone options, according to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, are White Noise Lite, White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds, and Bedtime Fan: White Noise Baby. Opt for an app that has a varied sound library. “White noise” is typically shorthand for various background sound frequencies. Pink noise sounds like gentle rain. Brown noise is similar to an airplane hum. True white noise resembles static. I know, falling asleep wearing AirPods or other earbuds can be painful. But these are different. When Bose discontinued its Sleep buds, I panicked at the thought of traveling without them. If using it nightly, consider setting your app or device’s timer to shut off automatically during sleep, giving your ears a rest. And researchers urge caution if playing white noise for children because their brains are still developing. If your TV is at a normal volume and you can still hear it above the white noise, that’s the right level, he says. If your white noise can drown out a chain saw
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Sunday, March 23, 2025