What Is Pink Noise?
To understand pink noise, it helps to know first that sound is essentially vibrations. These vibrations can be categorized into speeds i.e. fast or slow and how fast they move is called the frequency.
Low frequencies are slow vibrations, like a deep rumble or thunder. High frequencies are fast, like a whistle or a bird chirping.
Pink noise is a mix of both, but it leans more toward the lower, deeper sounds. That’s why it feels softer, more natural, and less sharp - kind of like an air conditioner, rhythmic heartbeat or the whooshing sounds babies hear in the womb.
How this applies to baby sleep is that it’s believed that pink and white noise could improve sleep by creating a consistent sound environment. These noise sounds can reduce the contrast between background noise and any sudden loud noises, (effectively masking disruptive sounds) like doors closing or excitable toddlers playing in the other room (one can dream anyway!), therefore offering your little one a chance at an uninterrupted snooze.
Also as a rhythmic heartbeat or a whooshing sound of the womb falls into a pink noise category, it can be assumed that pink noise helps to ease the transition to world-side and make for a more calming and familiar sleep environment. Is that not just the sweetest?!
Examples Of Pink Noise Sounds
Some other examples of sounds that fall into the pink noise category are:
- Steady Rainfall
- Ocean Waves
- Rustling Leaves
- Wind
- A rhythmic heartbeat
- River Flow
There is a bit of a natural-esque pattern forming here!
