7 Ways Music Benefits Wellness
You probably already know the amazing benefits of music, to uplift and inspire. But, did you know that music may actually impact your health in positive ways? So, turn up your favorite song and discover the surprising health benefits of music!
Could provide pain relief
Soothing music may make the pain go away, or at least feel a little better. According to Psychology Today, the body experiences pain when nerves relay the information from an injury to the brain. Listening to music that expresses pleasant emotions, like contentment, could actually impact those signals and alleviate the experience of physical pain.
May help boost heart health
Have you ever made the connection between the beats in music with your own heartbeat? A close connection exists between music and heart rate, and your breathing and heart rhythms actually sync with music as you listen, reported Scientific American. Because music could alter the heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure, physicians could use music to aid patients with heart conditions. For example, doctors could play relaxing music to calm heart and respiration rates, a therapy used for patients who have had a heart attack.
Helps to elevate your mood
When you feel blue, turn up your favorite feel good playlist. According to research published in Frontiers, listening to uplifting music could shift your mood. Participants who felt unpleasant emotions, like anger or anxiety, eased their tension by listening to calming music. Those who felt depressed also experienced validation and comfort by having their feelings acknowledged when listening to music that reflected their current mood.
Could aid patients recover from strokes
Doctors use music therapy as a way to help stroke survivors recover from memory loss and speech impairment. Harvard Health explained that stroke patients may lose their ability to speak clearly but music stimulates the right areas of the brain to revive motor or muscle-activating nerves, which could help with speech recovery.
Helps to increases endurance
If you want to add an extra boost to your workout routine, turn up the jams! According to Scientific American, music may increase your endurance, especially when you listen to exhilarating and upbeat songs. Powerful music, like a rock beat or belted note, stimulates neural circuitry that could help you stay motivated and push yourself to be stronger.
May stimulate memory
Have you ever noticed how a song can bring you back to a specific memory in your past? According to Harvard Health, music activates areas of the brain associated with memory. It may even help people with dementia restore memory loss, like a tool to open the doors to your “memory vaults”. The Mayo Clinic found similar benefits: Musical memories are often preserved in people who have Alzheimer’s disease and it is recommended to play music to connect with loved ones who have the disease.
Helps You Focus
Do you listen to music while you study? If so, you are not alone. That’s because music can help you focus. A 2007 study from the Stanford University School of Medicine suggested that music can help you better absorb and interpret new information. That’s because listening to music engages your brain and actually trains it to pay more attention to what you are learning. So put your headphones on and study.
