Tune Up Your Wellbeing: How to Harness the Power of Music For Your Benefit

How music can play a significant role in improving your overall wellbeing

Music has been a part of human culture for thousands of years. Now a varied group of studies suggests that music may enhance human health and performance.

Let's explore the effects of music on our physical and mental wellbeing.

Music Helps to Reduce Stress

When we are stressed, our heart rate and blood pressure goes up, and our adrenal gland begins producing cortisol - the stress hormone. Recent research suggests that listening to music can lower our heart rate and cortisol levels thereby reducing stress, anxiety and improving our sense of wellbeing.

Music Helps to Reduce Pain

Music has been used as a form of pain relief for centuries, dating back to ancient Greece.

Now small-scale studies with patients has shown that listening to “self-chosen, pleasant, familiar music” reduced post-op pain and stress. Scientists believe the effect may result from music actually shifting brain activity away from pain-related connectivity patterns, as well as creating positive emotions, and offering a distraction.

Music Improves Brain Functions

Latest advances in neuroscience enable researchers to measure how music affects the brain.

It has been observed that music can activate almost all brain regions and network, which helps to keep brain pathways and networks strong, including those networks that are involved in well-being, learning and cognitive functions.

Research suggests that playing an instrument also improves brain activity as it requires you to pay attention and memorize. Billionaire Warren Buffet is an accomplished ukulele player and Albert Einstein was an accomplished violinist.

But if you don't have the time to learn an instrument then simply play your list of favorite songs in the background.

Music Helps to Improve Productivity and Creativity

Although Science is inconclusive on how music affects productivity, there’s still anecdotal evidence that music makes people more productive.

It is observed that music creates dopamine which stimulates the prefrontal cortex. This is the center of the brain responsible for planning, organizing, inhibition control and attention thereby making you more productive.

However it's important to note that the effect of music on productivity may vary depending on personality type and musical preference.

Conclusion

Music has been a part of human lives for centuries and now research shows that music can play a key role in enhancing our overall quality of life. So, the next time you're feeling stressed, tired, or just in need of a pick-me-up, turn on some music and let it work its magic.