Scientists also know that listening to music can alter your breath rate, your heart rate, and your blood pressure, depending on the music’s intensity and tempo. Music can make you want to move - and the benefits of dancing are well documented.

Music’s effects on the body It can help your heart health The same research review found that drum circles also had above-average benefits for people dealing with depression. Not into jazz or the classics? You may want to try a group percussion session instead. It helps the symptoms of depressionĪ 2017 research review concluded that listening to music, particularly classical combined with jazz, had a positive effect on depression symptoms, especially when there were several listening sessions conducted by board certified music therapists. One recent study that measured several indicators of stress (not just cortisol) concluded that while listening to music before a stressful event doesn’t reduce anxiety, listening to relaxing music after a stressful event can help your nervous system recover faster. This same study referenced previous research stating that music had little measurable effect on cortisol levels. One study indicated that the body releases less cortisol, a stress hormone, when people listen to music. There’s conflicting evidence about whether listening to music has an effect on your body’s physiological stress response, however. Even people facing critical illness feel less anxiety after music therapy. Similar studies indicate that music blended with nature sounds help people feel less anxious. Studies have shown that people in rehab after a stroke are more relaxed once they’ve listened to music for an hour. There’s lots of evidence that listening to music can help calm you in situations where you might feel anxious. It has the power to change moods and help people process their feelings.

One of the most common uses of music? It helps people regulate their emotions, researchers found. Study participants vary widely in terms of age, gender, and background, but they report strikingly similar reasons. oxytocin, a chemical that fosters the ability to connect to othersĪlthough more research needs to be done to understand precisely how music can be used therapeutically to treat mental illness, some studies suggest that music therapy can improve the quality of life and social connectedness for people with schizophrenia.Ī number of researchers have interviewed groups about why they listen to music.serotonin and other hormones related to immunity.dopamine, a chemical associated with pleasure and “reward” centers.Neurological researchers have found that listening to music triggers the release of several neurochemicals that play a role in brain function and mental health: That’s why some caregivers have had success using music to calm dementia patients and build trusting connections with them. Music memory is one of the brain functions most resistant to dementia. Mayo Clinic points out that while music doesn’t reverse the memory loss experienced by people with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, music has been found to slow cognitive decline, helping people with mild or moderate dementia remember episodes from their lives. Mozart helped people complete the task faster and more accurately. The same study tracked how fast people could perform simple processing tasks - matching numbers to geometrical shapes - and a similar benefit showed up. Those who were listening to classical music outperformed those who worked in silence or with white noise. In one study, researchers gave people tasks that required them to read and then recall short lists of words. Music also has a positive effect on your ability to memorize.

Listen to calmness