How to Use White Noise for Sounder Sleep

If you have trouble falling asleep or are easily awakened during the night, many sleep specialists recommend trying a sound conditioner or white noise machine. White noise machine devices work in two ways: by blocking distracting noises and producing soothing sounds that are relaxing and help to induce sleep.

Research has shown that white noise can help patients sleep through the type of sounds that occur in a hospital Intensive Care Unit setting by helping to block out ambient noise. White noise may be especially useful for people with tinnitus. White noise can help mask the sound, which tends to be more noticeable and disruptive at night.

But not all experts agree. In 2020, Mathias Basner, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia found that while some evidence existed that white noise machines could help people to fall asleep faster than normal, not all of the evidence stood up to academic scrutiny.

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