Pink noise, white noise, brown noise – sleep sounds come in more shades than a Pantone color wheel, and new research suggests we should pay closer attention to how loud we’re playing them. Many adults use some form of ambient noise to fall asleep, and according to “This Common Natural Sleep Aid Could Be Making Things Worse,” that habit might be backfiring. A study published in the journal Sleep followed 25 healthy adults in a sleep lab for seven nights, exposing them to various sounds including pink noise. Lead researcher Dr. Mathias Basner found that participants showed lower sleep quality and less REM sleep when exposed to noise as low as 40 decibels. So how loud is too loud? According to “What’s the Acceptable Noise Level in a Bedroom?” from our partners at Ozlo (maker of the SMM staff’s favorite sleep buds), your environment should ideally stay at or below 30 decibels, around whisper level. For reference, this chart shows a refrigerator hum hits 40 dB, while normal conversation registers around 60 dB. Another angle to consider is that for some folks, consistent low-level noise is the lesser of two evils. It can serve the purpose of masking sudden sounds like a passing car that could otherwise snap you awake entirely. It’s worth noting that Dr. Basner’s study had a small sample size and focused on people without existing sleep issues who didn’t typically use ambient noise, so these findings are one of many data points worth considering. Still, if you rely on a noise machine or sleep buds to play calming ambient noise, experimenting with lower volumes may be worth a try.

#SoundJudgment