The power of music: how it can benefit health
"I think music in itself is
healing," American musician Billy Joel once said. "It's an explosive
expression of humanity. It's something we are all touched by. No matter what
culture we're from, everyone loves music." Most of us would wholeheartedly
agree with this statement, and it is this universal bond with music that has
led researchers across the globe to investigate its therapeutic potential.
"We
have a such a deep connection to music because it is 'hardwired' in our brains
and bodies," said Barbara Else.
We can
all think of at least one song that, when we hear it, triggers an emotional
response. It might be a song that accompanied the first dance at your wedding,
for example, or a song that reminds you of a difficult break-up or the loss of
a loved one.
"We
have a such a deep connection to music because it is 'hardwired' in our brains
and bodies," Barbara Else, senior advisor of policy and research at
the American Music Therapy Association told Medical
News Today. "The elements of music - rhythm, melody, etc. - are echoed
in our physiology,
functioning and being."
Given
the deep connection we have with music, it is perhaps unsurprising that
numerous studies have shown it can benefit our mental health. A 2011 study by
researchers from McGill University in Canada found that listening to
music increases the amount of dopamine
produced in the brain - a mood-enhancing chemical, making it a feasible
treatment for depression.
And
earlier this year, MNT reported on a study published in The
Lancet Psychiatry that suggested listening to hip-hop music -
particularly that from Kendrick Lamar - may help individuals to understand
mental health disorders.
But
increasingly, researchers are finding that the health benefits of music may go
beyond mental health, and as a result, some health experts are calling for
music therapy to be more widely incorporated into health care settings.
In this
Spotlight, we take a closer look at some of the potential health benefits of
music and look at whether, for some conditions, music could be used to improve
- or even replace - current treatment strategies.
Reducing
pain and anxiety
Bob Marley
once sang: "One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no
pain." According to some studies, this statement may ring true.
Earlier
this year, MNT reported on a study led by Brunel University in
the UK that suggested music may reduce pain and anxiety for
patients who have undergone surgery.
By analyzing 72 randomized controlled trials involving more than
7,000 patients who received surgery, researchers found those who were played
music after their procedure reported feeling less pain and anxiety than those
who did not listen to music, and they were also less likely to need pain
medication.
This
effect was even stronger for patients who got to choose the music they listened
to. Talking to MNT, study leader Dr. Catharine Meads said:
"If
music was a drug, it would be marketable. [...] Music is a noninvasive, safe,
cheap intervention that should be available to everyone undergoing
surgery."
This
study is just one of many hailing music for its effects against pain. In March
2014, researchers from Denmark found music may be beneficial for patients
with fibromyalgia - a disorder that causes muscle and joint pain and fatigue.
Listening
to calm, relaxing, self-chosen music "reduced pain and increased
functional mobility significantly" among 22 patients with fibromyalgia, according to the
investigators.
But why
does music appear to ease pain? While the exact mechanisms remain unclear, many
researchers believe one reason is because listening to music triggers the
release of opioids in the brain, the body's natural pain relievers.
Dr.
Daniel Levitin, of McGill University in Canada, and colleagues talk about this
theory in a 2013 review, citing research that found people experienced less pleasure from
listening to their favorite song when given Naltrexone -
a drug that blocks opioid signals - suggesting music induces the release of
opioids to ease pain.
An
effective stress reliever
When feeling stressed, you may find listening to your
favorite music makes you feel better - and there are numerous studies that
support this effect.
A study reported by MNT last month, for
example, found that infants remained calmer for longer when they were played music rather than spoken to - even when speech involved baby
talk.
The study researchers, including Prof. Isabelle Peretz of
the Center for Research on Brain, Music and Language at the University of
Montreal in Canada, suggested the repetitive pattern of the music the infants
listened to reduced distress, possibly by promoting "entrainment" -
the ability of the body's internal rhythms to synchronize with external
rhythms, pulses or beats.
Research suggests
music lowers levels of the "stress hormone" cortisol.
Another study conducted in 2013 found that not only did listening
to music help reduce pain and anxiety for
children at the UK's Great Ormond Street Hospital, it helped reduce stress -
independent of social factors.
According to some researchers, music may help
alleviate stress by lowering the body's
cortisol levels - the hormone released in response to stress.
The review by Dr. Levitin and colleagues, however, suggests
this stress-relieving effect is dependent on what type of music one listens to,
with relaxing music found most likely to lower cortisol levels.
Another mechanism by which music may alleviate stress is the
effect it has on brainstem-mediated measures, according to Dr. Levitin and
colleagues, such as pulse, heart rate, blood pressure and body temperature; again, the effect is dependent
on the type of music listened to.
"Stimulating music produces increases in cardiovascular
measures, whereas relaxing music produces decreases," they explain.
"[...] These effects are largely mediated by tempo: slow music and musical
pauses are associated with a decrease in heart rate, respiration and blood
pressure, and faster music with increases in these parameters."
Music's effect on heart rate and its potential as a stress
reliever has led a number of researchers to believe music may also be effective
for treating heart conditions.
Earlier this year, MNT reported on a study
presented at the British Cardiology Society Conference in Manchester, UK, in
which researchers from the UK's University of Oxford found repeated musical
phrases may help control heart rate and reduce blood pressure - though they noted more research is required in this
area.
Music
and memory
Certain songs have the ability to remind us of certain
periods or events in our lives - some that make us smile, and some we would
rather forget.
With this in mind, researchers are increasingly
investigating whether music may aid memory recall.
Studies suggest music
may aid memory recall for adults in the early stages of dementia.
In 2013, a study published in the journal Memory
& Cognition enrolled 60 adults who were learning Hungarian. The
adults were randomized to one of three learning tasks: speaking unfamiliar
Hungarian phrases, speaking the same phrases in a rhythmic fashion or singing
the phrases.
When asked to recall the phrases, the researchers
found participants who sang
the phrases had much higher recall accuracy than
the other two groups. "These results suggest that a 'listen-and-sing'
learning method can facilitate verbatim memory for spoken foreign language phrases,"
say the authors.
Evidence from such studies has led researchers to suggest
music may help memory recall for people with cognitive disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease.
A study published in the journal Gerontologist last
year assessed the effect of music on memory recall in individuals with
early-stage dementia.
For the research, 89 people with dementia and their
caregivers were randomly assigned to either a 10-week singing coaching group, a
10-week music listening coaching group or usual care.
The results revealed that both the singing and music
listening groups not only had better mood and overall well-being that the usual
care group, but they demonstrated better episodic memory on cognitive
assessments. The singing group also showed
better working memory than the usual care group.
"Regular musical leisure activities can have long-term
cognitive, emotional, and social benefits in mild/moderate dementia and could
therefore be utilized in dementia care and rehabilitation," the authors
concluded.
Cognitive,
emotional, and social benefits of regular musical activities in early dementia:
randomized controlled study, P. Rantanen et al., Gerontologist,
doi: 10.1093/geront/gnt100, published online August 2014, abstract.
Music reduces pain and increases functional mobility in fibromyalgia,
Eduardo A. Garza-Villarreal et al., Frontiers in Psychology, doi:
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00090, published online February 2014.
Science
Daily, Listening to music improves stroke patients' recovery, study
shows, published February 2008.
Singing
can facilitate foreign language learning, Katie Overy et al., Memory
& Cognition, published January 2014, abstract.
The neurochemistry of music, Daniel J. Levitin et
al., Trends in Cognitive Sciences, doi:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2013.02.007, published April 2013.
The
therapeutic effect of neurologic music therapy and speech language therapy in
post-stroke aphasic patients, Sung-Kyun Kim et al., Annals of
Rehabilitative Medicine, doi:10.5535/arm.2013.37.4.556, published online
August 2013, abstract.
Wellbeing
and hospitalized children: Can music help?, David J. Hargreaves et al., Psychology
of Music, doi: 10.1177/0305735613499781, published online August
2013, abstract.
RECOMMENDED RELATED
NEWS
American Psychological
Association (APA), ScienceDaily
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, ScienceDaily
Springer Science+Business
Media, ScienceDaily
Mayo Clinic, ScienceDaily
Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
New England Journal of
Medicine
Samuel A. Frank,
MD, myCME
John L. Leahy,
MD, myCME
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