Think pink!

Meet white noise’s little-known cousin, touted for its sleep-boosting benefits, says Niamh Leonard-Bedwell

YOU’VE heard of white noise but what about pink noise?

Like light, sound has a spectrum, meaning that as well as white noise there’s also blue, green and brown. Now, pink noise in particular is being celebrated for its potential power as a sleep aid.

Like white noise, pink noise is made up of all the sound frequencies that we can hear. However, the energy of pink noise is more intense at lower frequencies than white, meaning that it has a deeper sound, which is more pleasing to the human ear – think rustling leaves, ocean waves and the human heartbeat.

With regards to boosting sleep, the idea is that while sudden noises – like a door slamming, or a dog barking – wake us up, consistent noise can be soothing enough to lull us into a deeper sleep.

Some baby toys work on this principle, mimicking the sound of a mother’s heartbeat from inside the womb. For those with noisy neighbours, or who live on a busy road, a stream of pink noise can help muffle distracting sounds.

WHAT’S INVOLVED?

If you’ve opened a window at night to be soothed by the sound of rain, you’ve already benefited from pink noise. But those who struggle to get decent shuteye may want to find other solutions.

There are pink noise apps for smartphones, which you could download and play through your phone to help you drift off.

Or you could invest in a noise machine for sleep. Many white noise machines feature pink noise settings as well.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?

Anyone who struggles with their sleep will know how much of an impact it can have on mood, energy levels and the ability to concentrate.

Additionally, sleep quality is linked to weight gain, heart disease and diabetes, so if you’re struggling, it’s important to find a solution for the sake of your health.

As well as the obvious benefit of helping you to sleep, listening to pink noise is believed to have memory-boosting benefits, too.

This is because the quality sleep which pink noise promotes is essential for memory retention. It has been theorised that listening to pink noise might prevent older adults from developing dementia.

ANY SCIENCE?

Research is in its very early stages but available studies show that pink noise helps reduce brain waves and encourage deep sleep.

IMPROVING MEMORY

In a small study, participants in a study, who were older people, were

PINK POWER It can help poor sleepers given a memory test before and after sleeping, and as they slept pulses of pink noise were played.

The researchers found that performance on memory tests improved after pink noise was played overnight, compared with nights where it wasn’t played.

STABILISING SLEEP

In a 2012 study, researchers tested whether pink noise had an impact on sleep quality by observing participants over the course of two different nights.

On one night, the subjects slept in silence, sleeping with pink noise in the background on the second.

After two nights, the researchers found a significant increase in stable sleep during the pink noise condition, as indicated by heart rate and breathing.

TARGETING DEMENTIA

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is the stage between expected age-related cognitive decline and dementia, characterised by forgetfulness and struggling to recall words.

Studies suggest that if it’s related to a health condition, like sleep deprivation, it might be possible to reverse MCI.

In 2019, researchers recruited nine adults with MCI to take part in a sleep study, performing a recall task after sleep on two nights.

The results showed that performance on the task improved for five out of nine participants after a night of pink noise-stimulated sleep, compared with a control ol test, where no pink noise se was played.

This feature is from the he current issue of Healthy y Magazine, from holland d and barrett.com and H&B stores nationwide. e.