17/08/2025

ON SUNDAY August 17, 2025 theSunday Special IV

W HAT if your brain could be nudged into a calmer, sharper state just by lis tening to the right kind of noise? That’s the idea behind binaural beats – a digital audio trend gaining traction on platforms like YouTube and Spotify. The tracks themselves don’t carry lyrics or melodies. Instead, they use precise sound IUHTXHQFLHV WR WU\ WR LQÀXHQFH EUDLQZDYH DFWLYLW\ ZLWK SURPLVHG HIIHFWV UDQJ ing from anxiety reduction to improved memory and better sleep. It sounds ambitious. But does it actu DOO\ ZRUN" B LQDXUDO EHDWV RFFXU ZKHQ WZR WRQHV RI VOLJKWO\ GL̆ HUHQW IUHTXHQFLHV DUH SOD\HG into each ear – say, 300 Hz in one and 310 Hz in the other. The brain doesn’t hear both. Instead, it detects a third “phantom” EHDW DW WKH GL̆ HUHQFH EHWZHHQ WKH WZR LQ this case, 10 Hz. That 10 Hz signal isn’t a real sound. It’s a kind of internal pulse that the brain interprets as rhythm and this perceived EHDW DSSHDUV WR OLQH XS ZLWK NQRZQ EUDLQ ZDYH VWDWHV H HUH¶V WKH JHQHUDO EUHDNGRZQ • Delta (1–4 Hz): Deep sleep • Theta (4–8 Hz): Meditation, relax ation • Alpha (8–13 Hz): Calm alertness • Beta (13–30 Hz): Focus and active thinking • Gamma (30–50 Hz): Heightened DZDUHQHVV The theory is that by “feeding” the brain WKHVH EHDW IUHTXHQFLHV ZH PD\ HQFRXUDJH it to adopt the same rhythm – a concept called entrainment.

Tuning your brain with sound you can’t hear Calming noise or clever neuroscience? Here’s what research says about binaural beats

Binaural beats aren’t magic – but for some, they offer a mental edge.”

BY DR SRITHARAN VELLASAMY

From ancient rhythm to digital therapy While binaural beats may sound modern, the idea of using rhythm to influence the brain is centuries old. Monks have long used repetitive chants. Drumming FHUHPRQLHV DURXQG WKH ZRUOG RIWHQ UHO\ on steady, trance-inducing pulses. What’s GL̆ HUHQW QRZ LV WKH SUHFLVLRQ DQG DFFHV VLELOLW\ $Q\RQH ZLWK D SDLU RI KHDGSKRQHV and a playlist can experiment. H RZHYHU ZKHWKHU LW ZRUNV DV DGYHU tised is still up for debate. A 2019 study in Psychiatry Research reported that SDUWLFLSDQWV ZKR OLVWHQHG WR +] DOSKD range) binaural beats for 15 minutes a GD\ VKRZHG ORZHU OHYHOV RI VHOI UHSRUWHG DQ[LHW\ RYHU D WZR ZHHN SHULRG $QRWKHU paper in Frontiers in Human Neurosci ence found that exposure to beats in the EHWD UDQJH DURXQG +] WHPSRUDULO\ improved reaction time and focus. Yet many of the studies have small VDPSOH VL]HV (̆ HFWV DUH RIWHQ VXEMHFWLYH DQG SODFHER H̆ HFWV ZKHUH SHRSOH LPSURYH

What you hear isn’t always what you feel. Your brain fills in the gaps.”

simply because they expect to, can be complex to distinguish from genuine improvements. “Some areas of sound therapy may be EDFNHG E\ UHVHDUFK EXW RWKHUV UHTXLUH further validation to ensure responsible application,” according to Lim Jia Chuan, Special Interest Group Leader for Audiol ogy & Aural Rehabilitation at the Malay sian Association of Speech-Language and +HDULQJ 0$6+ S KH DOVR DGGHG WKDW VRXQG OHYHOV EHORZ 70 dB are generally considered safe. Still, if binaural beats or other audio tools exceed this threshold, exposure time should be limited to reduce the risk of hearing damage.

The tracks use precise sound öľãĽŏãěÙÿãłϰŊĢϰŊľũϰŊĢϰÿěŽŏãěÙãϰ brainwave activity.