Patterns and Motivations for White Noise Use in Children: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Parental Practices

Introduction White noise is commonly used as a pediatric sleep aid, but parental use patterns, motivations, and perceived developmental concerns remain poorly characterized. This study aimed to assess the frequency of white noise use among children presenting to a pediatric otolaryngology clinic, describe parental practices and motivations, and evaluate whether white noise use was associated with parental concerns about their child's speech or hearing development. Methods A cross-sectional survey was distributed to parents of children aged eight years or younger at a pediatric otolaryngology clinic affiliated with an academic tertiary care hospital from December 2023 to June 2024. Survey items assessed parental demographics, child age, reason for the clinic visit, concerns regarding speech and hearing development, and white noise use practices. Results A total of 253 parents completed the survey. White noise use was reported by 150 parents (59.3%). Among parents who used white noise, most used a white noise machine kept in the bedroom (n = 123, 82.0%) and played white noise overnight (n = 136, 90.7%). The most common motivations were improving sleep quality (n = 97, 64.7%) and masking environmental noise (n = 92, 61.3%). The mean daily exposure was 9.6 ± 2.6 hours. Parents who used white noise had younger children than those who did not (mean age: 3.3 vs 4.4 years; p < 0.001). White noise use was not associated with parental concerns about speech or hearing development. Conclusions White noise use appears to be common among parents of young children and is primarily used overnight to improve sleep quality and mask environmental noise. These findings support greater clinician awareness of pediatric white noise practices and highlight the need for evidence-based counseling on safe use, while acknowledging the limitations of parent-reported data, single-site sampling, and the absence of objective measurements of device sound output.