No I’m not making that up – this study on white noise uses ME as a reference. You probably don’t know (or don’t care) but I’m actually a reference in this peer-reviewed scientific study published by Pediatrics. (You all know I’m not a sound engineer right?) On A Personal Note Unless you have a high-quality Level 2 Sound Meter handy this is probably the best you can do. The SPLnFFT ($3.99) and SoundMeter+ ($1.99) apps both got excellent reviews here. I can’t make any claims to their accuracy. There are a variety of apps to test the volume of sound. “Reality check” the volume where your child sleeps: does it sound like the volume of somebody taking a shower to you?.Check the ambient noise of white noise in your child’s room with a decibel meter app.*.(Would be super helpful if they simply listed the products tested no?) If you’re using a baby white noise device you should probably assume that it’s too loud if set to the highest volume.Never put a white noise machine in or immediately next the crib.Your baby as an auditory threshold of at least 25-35 db until their first birthday (adults have an auditory threshold of 0 db) so 50 dB is a very conservative volume and sounds far more quiet to your child than it does to you.īut even so, how can we make sure we’re not overdoing it? Use White Noise Safely Also, it’s important to note that babies don’t hear like you do. As a comparison, normal human conversation is 60 db, so 50 dB is quieter than just about everything that you and your baby do during the day.
You want to use white noise that is no louder than 50 dB, approximately the volume of somebody taking a shower. They might be OK if you turn down the volume or place them more than 200 cm away from the crib. The issue isn’t that white noise is harmful, the issue is that some of the gadgets we’re using are probably too loud. In the NYT article, Weissbluth backs it up too. Karp maintains that the use of white noise, used appropriately, is just fine. Using white noise of appropriate volume has many scientifically documented benefits to your child.White noise devices marketed for use with babies are, if set to the loudest volume, likely surpassing the 50 dB guideline.The study does not say that white noise is bad, it said that many baby white noise machines are too loud and that is bad.But before I start making staid references to babies and bathwater let’s take a look at what we know…. Probably by this point you’re probably feeling like this whole white noise thing is a mess and better to stop using it entirely because…why risk it? I hear you. “Our measurements are only taken six inches away from the machine, and that’s obviously much closer than we’d recommend,” she said.
Michelle Landesman, the customer care director at Marpac, said that the company’s Dohmie sound conditioner for babies has a decibel range of 50 to 75. Marpac (device manufacturer) did respond to the NYT reporter saying this: Graco declined to answer (bad move Graco, it makes you look like you have something to hide n’est-ce pas?). The author asked some of the leading manufacturers of baby white noise machines if they could specify the volume output of their devices. The New York Times has a great writeup on this. Sadly they don’t specify which devices they tested so if you’re wondering if one of these problematic devices is the exact one you’re using right now the answer is, “Who knows.” The study does a great job of highlighting the fact that some devices marketed for use with infants are producing noise that is too loud. According to these measures, all sound machines were above the recommended volume of 50 dB when measured from crib or table-side distance, and some were even reaching levels of 85+ dB.
The study took 14 infant sound machines (those marketed specifically for use with babies), turned the volume up to the loudest level, and measured the sound levels at three distances designed to approximate being hung directly on the crib rail, table-side next to the crib, or across the room from the crib. No brainer, right? Well today Pediatrics published study on white noise saying that the cute little baby white noise machine you got at your baby shower is too loud. Seems simple enough: buy one of the many commercial baby white nose machines and turn it on. It’s pretty much the only “no fail” baby sleep tool at your disposal. I make no secret of the fact that I love white noise because it’s immensely helpful in helping your children cry less and sleep better.
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