What is white noise?

Sound is made up of different acoustic frequencies that allow us to distinguish the different sounds that surround us. When a sound signal contains all the existing frequencies and they all occur at the same power, what is called White noise. White noise receives its name from parallelism with white light, which contains all the wave frequencies of the visible spectrum, that is, it contains all possible colors.

We can get close to “true” white noise with constant noises / sounds that do not allow others to be heard (or muffle), and whose sound waves are capable of plunging us into a calm environment. This is the case of the sounds of some electrical appliances running (washing machine, hair dryer ...), the television when it is not well tuned, or it could also be a fan, the kitchen extractor hood ... The auditory effect produced by these appliances does not It would be, in a rigorous way, white noise, but it is close and its effect has been seen to have benefits at different levels, as we will see.

• White noise is a constant sound that prevents other sounds and noises from standing out above it. Hence, many parents use it to calm babies (putting them near the washing machine or dryer ...)
• Using low-volume white noise at night has been shown to help some people fall asleep.
• It has also been used to improve the hearing sensitivity of those who suffer from tinnitus (constant low-volume whistling or whistling that can be very annoying).

What is white noise?

White noise is a constant sound that prevents other sounds and noises from standing out above it. It contains all the frequencies audible by the human ear, so that its presence is capable of masking the perception of any other sound.

White noise is very similar to that heard when a television channel is not tuned in and an image of whites, blacks and grays appears with a background, constant, monotone, without highs or lows. That is white noise, the amalgam of all possible auditory frequencies. Also the sound emitted by some electrical appliances, such as air conditioners or some ovens, but the sound in this case is not as pure as that emitted by the untuned television.

What are the advantages of white noise?

As we have said, it contains all the frequencies that the human ear can perceive, so that it can mask the auditory and cerebral perception of other sounds. For this reason it has been proven that certain people using low-volume white noise at night allows them to fall asleep.

When listening to white noise and relaxing, the ear and the auditory cerebral cortex are saturated, so that the rest of sound perceptions, unless they are high volume, cannot pass through this constant auditory barrier. The ear perceives them, of course, but they are included in the set of frequencies that make up white noise.

It has been shown to have a relaxing effect, especially in babies, which is why many parents use it to calm them or try to put them to sleep, if other strategies have not worked. Of course, specialists advise not to accustom them too much to this way of falling asleep, because in the long run they will always need this stimulus and will not be able to do it themselves.

White noise has also been used to improve the hearing sensitivity of people who suffer from tinnitus or, which consists of a series of low-volume beeps or whistles that people hear constantly and that can be very annoying, since in There is generally no treatment for this problem. People with tinnitus can frequently suffer from headaches, anxiety, and depression. The use of white noise when going to sleep makes it possible to mask these annoying sounds that are perceived in the ear without there being an external cause that produces them. In fact, with the silence of the night these tinnitus become more evident, so that white noise can mitigate them and allow people to sleep.

In spite of everything, it must be said that there have been no large studies on the effect of white noise for the treatment of insomnia or tinnitus. In case of suffering from these problems, it is always necessary to consult with specialists before using white noise as a treatment for these conditions. The insurances have a wide medical team specialized in otorhinolaryngology where they can perform the necessary tests to diagnose any type of auditory pathology that you may have.