Ever wondered why you fall asleep so easily when it’s raining at night or on a beach holiday? It’s all thanks to pink noise, the slower version of white noise. Unlike white noise, which is a static sound (think of the drone of a ceiling fan), pink noise commonly comes from nature. Pink noise has a waterfall effect rather than that of a soft humming of white noise.
Why pink noise?
Loud sounds can be a key disturbance to a good night's sleep. If you are woken by sound when you are transitioning into a deep sleep, you will stay in a light sleep all night. Pink noise regulates and soothes your brain waves, slowly preparing your brain for sleep. It has a soothing rhythm that blocks out other sounds, such as traffic outside or the mosquitoes buzzing in your ear.
When the body is able to transition from light sleep to deep sleep, the quality of your sleep improves, in turn boosting your memory the next day. A study concluded that those who slept with pink noise performed 30% greater on a memory test. Pink noise's slower rhythm enhances the ability to retain memory in all ages.
So, how can you use pink noise?
While pink noise can be calming at any time of the day, we suggest adding it in to you pre-sleep ritual. There are a few apps out there, but the ones we like to use are Insight Timer and kalmmind.
If you are adding pink noise to your pre-sleep ritual, try to set your meditation timer or playlist for at least 20 minutes, as it takes roughly 10-20 mins to fall into a deep sleep at night.
Pink noise is also great to use while travelling, as it adds a touch of comfort in a foreign environment. Plus, it will also help you fall asleep when jet lag hits.
Let us know if you've tried it, and how you went?
