Struggle to get your eight-hour sleep in at night? Been a lifelong insomniac, and tried every single remedy — sleeping pills, exercise, breathing techniques, cognitive behavioural therapy, white noise — but nothing stops you from feeling sluggish the next day?
There just might be a new brain detox hack for you, courtesy of none other than the university ranked #1 on QS World University Rankings, for 15 consecutive years.
According to a new Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) article, that researchers have found a way to increase waves of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain through exposure to pink noise — a type of noise, similar to white, where all noises are audible to the human ear, but “lower pitch frequencies are louder and higher pitch frequencies are softer.”
Think of rustling leaves, or even a heartbeat.
@calm Who else has this on repeat tonight? 💖 #calm #pinknoise #sleep ♬ original sound – Calm
CSF waves and brain detox
Now, if you’re confused about why increasing CSF waves even matters, here’s a quick breakdown, according to MIT researchers:
- During the day, the brain accumulates waste products like lactic acid and worn-out proteins.
- CSF waves act as a form of brain detox, washing these toxins away and keeping the brain healthy. MIT researchers have found that exposure to short bursts of pink noise, at the right time, can increase these waves.
- The study, led by Laura Lewis, the Athinoula A. Martinos Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, tested 14 healthy volunteers and found that the auditory stimulus they delivered increased the amplitudes of both slow electrical waves and CSF waves — both of which are associated with deep sleep.
- Now, researchers are looking to study whether enhancing CSF flow can not only help people get more restorative sleep, particularly those with insomnia, but also address diseases like Alzheimer’s, which are caused by the buildup of harmful proteins.
- Joshua Levitt, the paper’s lead author, has started a company to develop a headband or some sort of device that people could use at home to increase CSF flow.
If you need more tips on how to get better sleep, check out our article on six tips for the insomniac, caffeine-addicted students here.
