THE HEALING POWER OF MUSIC
- 2 ARTICLES -
This is very cool research, if a bit preliminary. But everyone who has ever loved music has felt its power, and anything that helps people heal physically while reducing the need for medication is A-OK with BiG TeA PaRtY. Speaking of music, check out the source of all BiG TeA PaRTY tracks: MoRE FiENDS
By Pallab Ghosh, BBC News science correspondent
Listening to music makes us feel better - but many doctors are now beginning to believe that it does much more. There is emerging evidence that it can bring about physical changes to the body that can improve our health.
The Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London has regular performances - and has seen impressive results. A scientific study by the hospital has found that patients who listen to live music need less drugs and recover more quickly than those who do not. According to Dr Rosalia Staricoff, who carried out the study, there is growing scientific evidence that music aids physical changes which can help heal the body.
She said: “The physiological benefits have been measured. Music reduces blood pressure, the heart rate, and hormones related to stress.”
Building evidence
Professor Paul Robertson regularly plays violin for patients in various hospitals. He is a scientist as well as an accomplished musician. He is now carrying out clinical trials to see how exactly music affects the brain and the body.
He said: “We are approaching the point where a doctor would legitimately be negligent not to actually recommend music as a therapeutic intervention. “What we are currently doing is building up the body of evidence so that we can say with clinical confidence that this is truly a beneficial intervention.”
The world’s largest medical charity, The Wellcome Trust, is now bringing together academics and artists to explore the possibility of putting music therapy on a more scientific footing. The man behind it is Dr Ken Arnold, head of public programmes for the trust.
He said “Our interest is in bringing together people as disparate as a musician, a psychologist, and a social thinker to share their ideas on music health and well being.”
Published: July 19, 2006, BBC NEWS
BBC NEWS
Listening to music in the early stages after a stroke can improve a patient’s recovery, research suggests.
The researchers compared patients who listened to music for a couple of hours a day, with those who listened only to audio books, or nothing at all. The music group showed better recovery of memory and attention skills, and a more positive general frame of mind. Writing in journal Brain, the Finnish team who studied 60 patients said music could be a useful addition to therapy.
Lead researcher Teppo Sarkamo, from the University of Helsinki, said music could be particularly valuable for patients not yet ready for other forms of rehabilitation. It also had the advantage of being cheap and easy-to-conduct.
Quick action
The study focused on 60 stroke patients who took part in the research as soon as possible after they had been admitted to hospital.
‘IT HELPED ME’
Dot Johnson, 60, had a stroke 15 years ago, and spent seven months in hospital. She had physiotherapy and other treatments, but she remembers that music and sound from the television were always on in her room. She thinks that stimulated her mind, and helped her get better. She said: “I genuinely think that music actually helped.”
The aim was to offer music therapy before the changes in the brain that can take place in the aftermath of a stroke had a chance to kick in. Most of the patients had problems with movement and with cognitive processes, such as attention and memory. Patients in the music group were able to choose the type of music they listened to. All patients received standard stroke rehabilitation.
After three months, verbal memory improved by 60% in the music group, compared with18% in the audio book group, and 29% in the non-listeners. Focused attention - the ability to control and perform mental operations and resolve conflicts - improved by 17% in the music group, but not at all in the other two groups. In addition, patients in the music group were less likely to be depressed, or confused.
Mr Sarkamo said: “Other research has shown that during the first weeks and months after stroke, the patients typically spend about three-quarters of their time each day in non-therapeutic activities, mostly in their rooms, inactive and without interaction, even although this time-window is ideal for rehabilitative training from the point of view of brain plasticity.
“Our research shows for the first time that listening to music during this crucial period can enhance cognitive recovery and prevent negative mood, and it has the advantage that it is cheap and easy to organise.”
However, he admitted that further work was needed to confirm the study, and that it should not be assumed that music therapy would work all patients.
He said: “Rather than an alternative, music listening should be considered as an addition to other active forms of therapy, such as speech therapy or neuropsychological rehabilitation.”
Possible theories
The researchers said it was possible that music directly stimulated recovery in the damaged areas of the brain. Alternatively, it might stimulate more general mechanisms related to the ability of the brain to repair and renew its neural networks after damage. Or it might specifically act on the part of the nervous system that is implicated in feelings of pleasure, reward and memory.
Dr Isabel Lee, of The Stroke Association, welcomed the research. However, she said: “Further research into the effect of music on stroke patients needs to be undertaken before any widespread use, as presently the mechanisms of any effect remain unclear.”
Published: February 20, 2008, BBC NEWS
April 8th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
I’ve heard that listening to music is something to which people with Alzheimer’s respond when other things don’t seem to reach them. And it’s said to go well with learning (understanding?) math. Of course it has been used for some things that aren’t as beneficial (except for people making money) when used to stimulate cows to produce more milk or chickens to lay more eggs. But if it helps people (and possibly other animals) to heal, that’s a great use.
Jayne