Sound therapy is an established part of tinnitus care. Masking sound is recommended in clinical tinnitus guidelines and is one of the most studied non-drug approaches, though trial quality varies and no single method works for everyone. Hobson et al., Cochrane Review, 2012, Tinnitus Guidelines and Their Evidence Base, 2023
Steady background noise can smooth out sleep-disrupting sounds. A controlled study found pink noise and earplugs reduced awakenings from intermittent environmental noise. Evidence is more mixed for noise played all night at high volume, so Optimum Brain keeps levels low and fades out rather than playing at full volume through the night. Efficacy of pink noise and earplugs, SLEEP, 2025, Overnight pink noise and sleep-dependent memory, PNAS, 2023
Binaural beats show some promise for stress and anxiety, but the evidence is still limited. Systematic reviews find modest, inconsistent effects across small studies, and call for larger, better-controlled trials before firm conclusions. Binaural beats as a stress-management strategy, systematic review, 2024
Slow, paced breathing measurably shifts the body toward calm. Meta-analyses link slower breathing rates to increased heart-rate variability, a marker the body uses to move out of a stress response. Voluntary slow breathing and heart rate variability, meta-analysis, 2022
About 6 breaths a minute is a deliberate pace, not an arbitrary one. This is close to most people's natural resonance frequency, where slow, even breathing produces the biggest swings in heart rate and the highest heart-rate variability. It's the basis for the app's coherent breathing guide. Lehrer & Gevirtz, Heart rate variability biofeedback: how and why does it work?, Frontiers in Psychology, 2014
For balance: the largest trial of coherent breathing so far, a 4-week study of about 400 people, found it calmed stress and low mood about as much as a breathing placebo, not more than it. Fincham et al., Scientific Reports, 2023
What this doesn't show: none of these studies used Optimum Brain itself, and sound therapy works alongside good sleep habits and stress management, not in place of them. Optimum Brain is a relaxation and wellness aid. It is not a medical device and doesn't diagnose, treat or cure tinnitus, insomnia, migraine or any other condition. If any of these are affecting your daily life, please talk to a healthcare provider.