Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University uncover the potential benefits of exposure to color noise for young people with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
A study published in the current issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry found a small but statistically significant benefit of white and pink noise on task performance in college-age children and young adults with ADHD.
Color noise represents a different combination of frequencies and volumes in the sound spectrum, each with its own special properties and effects on the brain. Just as white light contains all the colors of the rainbow, white noise contains all the noise frequencies and sounds like static. Pink and brown noise are similar but have a higher proportion of low frequencies; they can sound like rain or a waterfall.
As clinical understanding of ADHD continues to increase, there has been increasing interest in developing new, low-cost tools for diagnosing the disorder. One such tool that has attracted much interest recently is the potential use of color noise—including white, pink, and brown noise—to improve concentration performance during attention-demanding tasks.
Joel Nigg, Ph.D. (OHSU)
“Although outcomes are significantly improved with current treatments, ADHD can still dramatically increase the risk of serious and complex long-term health consequences because treatments are only partially effective and adherence is difficult,” said Joel Nigg, Ph.D.Professor of Psychiatry at the OHSU School of Medicine, co-director of the OHSU Center for Mental Health Innovation, and lead author of the study. “It is critical that we continue to explore complementary and alternative support services for people with ADHD.
“Our priority is to develop new and improved tools that enable each individual to live the healthiest and most productive life possible. In addition, we provide evidence-based guidance on popular ideas in the public, such as white or brown noise.”
Exploring color noise
The systematic review and meta-analysis included 13 studies with 335 participants. It found that either white or pink noise improved cognitive performance in children and young adults with ADHD or significant ADHD symptoms. In contrast, white or pink noise slightly decreased cognitive performance in individuals without ADHD or with normal attention.
Researchers say these findings suggest a possible low-cost, low-risk intervention that could help adolescents with ADHD. The use of white and pink noise is relatively safe, easy to implement and accessible, Nigg said. In addition, color noise therapies can be used inexpensively at home and in combination with other interventions, such as medication, with a relatively low risk of side effects.
At the same time, however, using color noise to increase attention is not without risks, warned Nigg. Hearing damage is a significant risk if volume is not carefully monitored, and other studies have shown that adolescents tend to use headphones for other activities when the volume is excessive. The effects of frequent use on children’s attention development are also unknown.
Given these unknowns, additional data would be needed to create clinical guidelines, Nigg said. Looking ahead, researchers need to prioritize additional studies comparing white or pink noise to other environmental stimulations — such as brighter lights or other types of noise — and test the range of effects across different task types and with different types and durations of acoustic stimulation.
In addition, study populations would need to be expanded and made more diverse to ensure accurate data are collected on race, ethnicity and other characteristics that could influence the effect, Nigg said, noting that the lack of a large, diverse sample population was a major limitation of the study.
“Although more research is needed to translate the findings into clinical practice, these initial results should be considered encouraging,” Nigg said. “The results should stimulate further work to clarify who can benefit and what doses and amounts are safe and appropriate. Supportive interventions are still needed for ADHD, which affects millions of children and adolescents around the world.”
Funding for this work was provided by Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), Purdue University, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) through National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health grant K23-AT012068 and National Institute of Mental Health grants R01-MH120109 and R37-MH059105. The contents of this article do not necessarily reflect the position of OHSU, Purdue, or the NIH or any of their institutes.
