• Is your baby fussy?

• Does your baby have colic?

• Does your baby have trouble relaxing and going to sleep, even when tired?

If so, then your baby (and you) could benefit from white noise.

WHAT IS "WHITE NOISE?"

Actually, white noise is not noise at all.  White noise is simply a sound that contains all sound frequencies, from low to high, in equal volumes, from low to high.  If that's too technical a definition for you, imagine listening to a radio, but not being able to tune in any radio stations.  What sound are your imagining?  That's right - static.  Well, that's pretty close to the sound of pure white noise.

Visit an eBay listing for WHITE NOISE
and LISTEN to a free sample!   

    After listening to it for a minute or two, many adults describe white noise as a steady and slow, peaceful "whooshing" sound that is instinctively relaxing.  After listening to it for 5-10 minutes, many babies fall asleep, or stop fussing.  Although it may seem strange, when your baby needs to sleep, that "static" sound called white noise is pure magic.

WHY IS "WHITE NOISE" SO EFFECTIVE
AT CALMING FUSSY OR COLICKY BABIES?

Pediatricians and other infant experts believe that white noise is very similar to sounds that babies hear in their mother's womb, before they were born:

• "White noise, such as the continuous, monotonous sound of a vacuum cleaner or a recording of ocean waves, can often relax and lull your baby..."
• Mayo Clinic, Complete Book of Pregnancy & Baby's First Year
  
  
• "A baby who cannot relax can be helped to do so by a variety of constant rhythmical stimuli.... it will work if the trouble is some kind of general and diffuse irritability or tenseness which is preventing a tired baby relaxing into sleep. The burring sound of a fan or heater works excellently. So does the sound of a car engine."
• Penelope Leach, Your Baby & Child From Birth to Age Five
  
  
• "Comforting the Crier. Many babies are calmed, for example, by the hum of a fan or vacuum cleaner, a tape recording of uterine gurglings, or a record that plays soothing nature sounds, such as waves breaking on the beach...."
• Eisenberg, Murkoff, and Hathaway, What to Expect the First Year
  
  
• "Many Babies Cry because they were born 3 months too soon! As helpful as [womb simulation] is for calm babies, it is essential for fussy ones... Every traditional baby-calming technique around the world imitates the sensations of the womb."
  -Dr. Harvey Karp, M.D., The Happiest Baby on the Block
  
  
• “Sounds that involve all the frequencies audible to the human ear and are continuous and monotonous are very effective in settling the restless baby and keeping her asleep.... The lower, more monotonous, and rhythmical the tone, the more soothing.... Sound ridiculous? Not really. If you have ever had a fussy baby, you will try anything that works.”
  -William Sears, Keys to Calming the Fussy Baby

WHAT ARE GOOD EXAMPLES OF WHITE NOISE
THAT I CAN USE TO CALM MY BABY?

    Any sounds that mimic the sounds that a baby has heard in the womb are good choices.  Popular sounds for calming babies are white noise, womb sounds, vacuum cleaner sounds, hair dryer.  Other people swear by such sounds as running water, clothes dryer sounds, or the sounds of an electric fan.  If you don't know what sounds work best to calm your baby, perhaps you want to check out a CD or MP3 Download that include all of these sounds so you can find out without spending a lot of money.

    The bottom line to remember if you have a fussy or colicky baby that is difficult to soothe, is that white noise can be very helpful.  Even though it may sound like "static" to you and I, for babies, white noise may remind them of the "womb service" they grew to love for 9 months.  :-)

    For more information, and helpful baby sleep products (including baby sleep CDs and MP3 downloads) that are guaranteed to work, please visit my store "Rock-A-Bye Baby and Me."