![]() This helps support keeping decibels at a safe level.Ĭonsider not using noise machines until after 6 months of age. Keep sound machine below its highest volume. This is based on AAP measurements of decibel levels of white noise machines at 30cm, 100cm, and 2 metres away. Keep sound machines at least 2 metres from your baby’s sleep surface. Make sure noise levels are 45 decibels or lower. ![]() So how does this all pull together to help you guide a decision around white noise machines? Here are seven things you can do that are evidence-informed: ![]() We just don't have any research exploring the pros and cons directly with older babies and young children. Using white noise machines to reduce sleep disruption in noisy households or with highly sensitive older babies may make a big difference in a family's "sleep plan". Last, most of the discussion on the risks of white noise machines aren’t about older babies. For more on that, see last week's blog, “White Noise: What is it good for?”. We are adding something to get newborns to sleep faster and longer, even if biologically they aren't "supposed to" -babies need to wake up often and need support to fall asleep. It's speculation.įourth, we know that white noise machines aren't part of the "biological expectation" babies have of their environment. If white noise machines are on all the time, or reduce the language-richness of an environment (are we less likely to coo, or sing, or talk to our babies when white noise machines are on?), there may be a negative impact. White noise machines probably do both: studies show babies can fall asleep faster AND show that noise can cause hearing loss AND that the hearing centre in the brain can be impacted. ![]() Things we do can be positive, negative, and both. Third, we know that many changes to the environment are not neutral. No studies that I am aware of have been done to explore this further, so it is a question mark at this point. And because rats and humans are similar in a lot of ways, and because the central auditory system is responsible for processing sound for developing language and for learning, there are some concerns about what this means for human babies' ability to learn language. There were changes in the central auditory system of the brain. In a 2017 study by Selehi et al, rats were exposed to 2 hours of 90 decibel sound in utero and in the newborn (critical development) period. What we want to create are conditions that change the brain in positive ways, or that give young brains what they need environmentally to grow and develop well. Your voice, your touch, the sights and smells in the room all change your baby's brain. It's worth pointing out that almost everything in the environment can change the brain. Second, we know that noise changes the brain. Three of the machines exceeded 85 dB, higher than what is considered safe for adults who are continually exposed without (such as in certain work conditions). Sarah Hugh and colleagues in Pediatrics showed that 14 of 14 machines they tested exceeded 45 dB, the recommended maximum decibels in hospital nurseries. Let's break down what we know, and what we don't know.įirst, we know that white noise machines can be loud. There's been a lot of "noise" about whether white noise machines cause changes in the brain that lead to communication/language delays and learning disabilities.
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