Now, if the thought of subjugating yourself to eerie, monotonous pure tones before calling it a night sounds awful, binaural beats don’t need much loudness to be effective. To fall asleep, we need to get our brainwaves to change from our normal waking state, which is mostly in the alpha and beta ranges, to the penultimate theta state (and then all the way to the delta state for truly restorative sleep).īinaural beats are a scientifically-backed way to expedite this transition into the lower brainwave frequencies, allowing you to get to the theta-delta ranges quicker and sleep like a rock. >40 Hz (Gamma) | Higher consciousness/perception/problem solving.31 - 39 Hz (Beta) | Anxiety/fear/paranoia.13 - 23 Hz (Beta) | Focused and mentally alert.8 - 12 Hz (Alpha) | Tranquil and awake relaxation (some REM sleep and dreaming occurs here as well).4 - 6 Hz (Theta) | Deep relaxation/meditation (or non-REM sleep).

1 - 2 Hz (Delta) | REM sleep (deepest sleep stage).

Here’s a handy list that summarizes the different brainwave frequencies and the mental state they generally correspond to: This is one reason L-theanine, an amino acid found in green tea, is commonly used as an over-the-counter sleep aid and nootropic supplement.Īt even lower frequencies are theta and delta brainwaves, where the deepest stages of sleep occur. The goal with binaural beats is to reach a state where your brainwave frequencies are operating near the same level as the stimulus sound wave frequencies.įor example, alpha brainwave frequencies are in the 8-12 hertz (Hz) range and where we are most relaxed, mindful, and tranquil. Hence, you will need headphones to properly use binaural beats for sleep, mood, and mental performance. The reason they are binaural” is because each ear must receive a dedicated tone. The term “binaural beats” is used to describe subjective hearing sensations that occur as a result of listening to two (or more) pure tones that have slightly different pitches and low frequencies. Let's get you all caught up on the trendy binaural beats sleep hack and how you can use it for optimal sack time. īut how do binaural beats work? What exactly are binaural beats? Heck, you can even listen to binaural beats for meditating - a proven strategy for improving mental health. Some people use binaural beats for focus and anxiety relief throughout the day. The good news is binaural beats work by improving sleep naturally, according to multiple human studies that we will cover in this article.Įven better, binaural beats aren’t just for sleep. While prescription sleep aids can certainly help, many users find that they have extremely vivid dreams and never fully wake up the following day because of how powerful the drugs are - almost as if being in a perpetual mental haze. (Not to mention the ramifications it can have on recovery, metabolism, and muscle growth.) Īfter all, sleep deprivation is a surefire way to start the day grumpy, lethargic, and irritable. People are likely becoming more vigilant about using things like natural sleep aid pills and sleep hacks now that there’s an overwhelming amount of evidence showing just how important quality sleep is for our health and longevity. However, the concept of using binaural beats for sleep has been around for quite some time studies of binaural beats go back to the mid-1900s.

There is a growing interest among the 'biohacker” community in using binaural beats for sleep and beating (no pun intended) insomnia naturally.

Binaural beats deep sleep