Have
you ever noticed how listening to your favourite song instantly puts
you in a good mood? Music, many agree, is a mood booster but scientists
have now discovered that music can do more than just lifting your
spirits. They say that listening to it helps to relive chronic neck and
back pain.
Consultant neurologist, Dr.
Segun Akinpelu, says music cand be the best medicine that any physician
could prescribe for a patient suffering from chronic pain and a
terminal illness such as cancer – a disease associated with
brain-numbing pain.
Akinpelu states
that music works well on the autonomic nervous system – the part of the
nervous system responsible for controlling our blood pressure, heartbeat
and brain function – and also the limbic system ,the part of the brain
that controls feelings and emotions.
“
The brain is the first to pick sounds and music. It is also the first
to react to pain. It is your brain that relates the pain sensation to
the body even though it seems like it is the body that reacts first. All
the systems in the brain react sensitively to music.
“So,
when people in pain listen to music, the feel-good sensation in the
brain overpowers the pain sensation. The pain neurons also relax to the
sensation of the music and this translates to lesser pain for the
individual.
“When slow rhythms are
played, our blood pressure and heartbeat slow down, which helps us
breathe more slowly, thus reducing muscle tension in our necks,
shoulders, stomachs and backs.”
Australian
scientists, in a new study on 650 patients aged between 21 and 68, with
chronic back pain, concluded that music is more beneficial and
effective than drugs when it comes to pain management.
Music,
they say, can meaningfully reduce the perceived intensity of pain,
especially in geriatric, accident and terminally ill patients care.
The
physicians compared the results of patients who received standard
medical care and physiotherapy with the other group that listened to
music and received visualisation classes for 25 minutes every day for
three weeks.
They found that the group who listened to music and used imagery experienced better pain relief than the group who did not.
Clinical
psychologist, Dr. Franz Wendtner , who led the study, says, “Music is
an important part of our physical and emotional wellbeing – ever since
we were babies in our mother’s womb listening to her heartbeat and
breathing rhythms. Listening to music for about 25 minutes every day for
at least 10 days can help prevent back pain and also make you sleep
better.”
In other words, when we feel
pain, we become frightened, frustrated and angry, which makes us tense
up hundreds of muscles in our back. Listening to music on a regular
basis helps our bodies to relax physically and mentally, thus helping to
relieve and prevent back pain.
Music
is not for just the soul, it is also good for the heart. Experts say
that apart from releasing physical tension, music also reduces
psychological tension in our mind and heart.
Cardiologist
and heart specialist, Dr. Segun Akinsanya, notes that musical waves
enhance blood vessel function and circulation of blood around the heart,
which helps us to breathe in and process oxygen better.
Akinsanya
adds that patients also experience happy emotions when listening to
music, which increases the secretion of endorphins which have been known
to increase blood flow to the blood vessels and organs of the body.
What
music will help achieve this? Experts believe any type of classical
music with a slow rhythm can help relieve muscle pain and calm the
nerves.
Evidence has also emerged that
fast-paced music boosts performance at work, during exercise or while
doing any strenuous activity.
Fitness
and healthy living expert, Mr. James Edwards, in a paper titled, ‘ Music
and Your Work’, states that listening to music while working gives a
better performance in several ways.
The
expert claims that music helps to block out every distraction from the
surroundings, which inadvertently increases one’s focus and
concentration on the task at hand.
Still on its effect on cognitive performance, scientists add that background music may enhance performance on cognitive tasks.
A
2011 study showed that listening to music allowed test takers to
complete more questions in the time allotted, and get more answers right
than those who were in a quiet room. Interesting – isn’t it? They
explain that this happens because the part of the brain which processes
music is located next to memory.
Other
studies show that listening to music releases endorphins – the natural
‘feel good’ hormones that lift mood and give people the motivation they
need to carry out some mental tasks like writing an examination.
Which
type of music is best? The physicians all agree that the best type of
music for improved mental performance is thought to be high-energy,
high-tempo music such as hip hop or dance music.
Listening
to music while driving can positively impact your mood too . So, when
you are feeling cranky in traffic, try cranking some of your favourite
tunes! What are you waiting for? Spend this weekend boogying down to
your favourite songs, then!
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