How does white noise help your baby sleep?

What is white noise?

White noise is defined as a noise containing many frequencies within the range of human hearing in equal amounts. 

How does white noise help your baby sleep?

A white noise machine can be a perfect solution for when your baby is upset, crying or overtired. The sound of white noise is comforting, particularly for newborns, as it creates a similar environment that baby has been used to while in the womb. For an extra womb like experience, some baby sleep soothers combine white noise with a mother’s heartbeat – this is very comforting and familiar for young babies and can really help with their transition from womb to world, sometimes referred to as the 4^th trimester. 

The sound of white noise is also effective at drowning out other household background noises, such as the doorbell or a dog barking, which could otherwise wake baby. It’s also great at breaking the silence, which is also new for baby, since they have been used to hearing all the internal womb sounds plus everything that mom hears since around 18 weeks. 

What type of white noise is best for baby sleep? 

For best results we would suggest a white noise machine with a variety of sounds so you can try each with your baby to see which is most effective. Make sure the sleep soother offers a variety of continuous, low base monotonous sounds such as rainfall or a hair dryer. 

Try to avoid white noise machines with intermittent sounds such as waves or birdsong as they do not offer a consistent sound, and when those sounds fade in and out your baby could be disturbed by other noises or have their sleep pattern interrupted.

The Ewan Deluxe sleep soother offers a mix of 5 white and pink noise sounds all combined with a mom’s heartbeat. These 5 sounds have been tried and tested by over 1 million families, so you can be sure Ewan has a proven track record at helping babies sleep. 

https://sweetdreamers.com/products/ewan-deluxe-grey

How to use white noise with my baby? 

To start using white noise, introduce the sounds as part of your baby’s bedtime and nap routines. Make sure that you do not play sounds too loudly as this could harm your baby’s delicate hearing - as a rule this is at a maximum of 60 decibels at around 3 feet away from your baby.  Play the white noise towards the end of their feed, after a short time baby will learn that this is a cue for sleep and each time, they hear the white noise it will signal to them that it’s time for sleep. You can continue to use the white noise as part of your baby’s bedtime routine for as long as you wish, most babies will naturally wean themselves off their white noise soother by around 12-18 months old. 

What is pink noise?

Pink noise is as a noise containing all the frequencies within the range of human hearing but unlike white noise which represents all the frequencies equally, the sounds are low base, and the higher frequencies are less audible. Many people find pink noise more soothing as the sounds are less harsh and are very similar to the sounds that a baby can hear pre-birth. An example of pink noise would be womb recordings. 

Which white noise machine will work best for baby? 

The most effective white noise machines will often play a combination of white and pink noise sounds to offer a varied range for the user, including that low base frequency sound that baby can hear inside the womb. 

Check out our multi award winning sleep soother called Ewan Dream Sheep Deluxe which offers exactly this, a variety of white noise and low base frequency pink noise sounds which are all combined with mom’s resting heartbeat for that extra womb like experience. Ewan Deluxe also has a handy cry sensor which will activate his soothing sounds when your baby cries during the night, plus Ewan has a calming pink nightlight to offer the perfect sleep solution for your baby. 

https://sweetdreamers.com/products/ewan-deluxe-grey