How Music Affects Brain Psychology
Listening to music is a favorite pastime for many of us. It’s a source of pleasure and entertainment. Some people can’t even work or study without listening to music. They claim that music makes them focus and concentrate. Now research and studies suggest that listening to music has several health benefits, both physical as well as psychological. Music relaxes the mind and body, manages pain levels, lowers stress levels, and even motivates the desire to work and exercise. Let’s look into the various ways how music affects brain psychology.
1. Music Reduces Stress
Listening to music helps manage and lower stress levels. Studies have proved that listening to white noise like the sound of falling raindrops or that of sea waves and gentle relaxing music has a positive impact on the human stress response. It has a positive effect on the autonomic nervous system and quickly lowers stress levels after being exposed to a stressful event.
2. Music Improves Cognitive Performance
As we said above, some people swear by the benefits of listening to music while working. They claim it increases their focus and concentration. And this has been corroborated by research too. Research has proved that listening to background music improves performance on cognitive tasks, especially in older adults. Listening to slow as well as fast music is beneficial for memory while listening to upbeat and fast music increases brain processing speeds. Therefore, listening to background music, especially instrumental tracks, will improve your cognitive performance.
3. Music Improves Memory
How music affects brain psychology? One answer is by improving the memory functions. Research suggests that listening to upbeat and positive music improves memory. Studies have shown that students learning a new language memorized better if they sang the words and phrases of the new language.
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4. Music Can Help Manage Food Portions
Music can even help you lose weight. In a study, participants ate less at venues with low-lit settings and soft mellow music in the background. The combination of music and lighting created a setting which made the participants relaxed and comfortable.
This helped prevent stress eating. Participants consumed and enjoyed their meals slowly and ate comparatively less and made a better choice of food. Our brains get the response of a full stomach after a delay of nearly 20 minutes. So a fast eater tends to overeat while a slow eater will get the response on time and stop the feeding frenzy. Playing soft music in dim lighting will help you eat slower and give you the feeling of a full stomach at the right time, preventing overeating.
5. Music Can Help Manage Pain Levels
Music can be very helpful in pain management. Studies found that patients who listened to music before, during, and after surgery had less levels of pain and anxiety compared to other patients. Patients got benefits when they listened to music at any of the three stages, but those who listened to music before surgery experienced significant benefits and also required less medication to manage pain. A study also found that fibromyalgia patients who listened to music had reduced pain levels.
6. Music Motivates You to Exercise Harder
Listening to fast-paced and upbeat music motivates people to work out harder. Music helps in both aerobic exercises like cycling & jogging and anaerobic exercises like heavier lifts and more repetitions. Listen to fast-paced music having 125 to 140 beats per minute for better workouts and improved fitness levels.
7. Music Leads to Better Sleep
Lack of sleep and reduced sleep have become common in the modern age. This has several side effects like reduced concentration, lethargy in the daytime, and low fitness levels. Research has proved that listening to relaxing music particularly classical music promoted better sleep. Those who listened to relaxing music before sleeping reported better sleep quality. So, whenever you face sleeping issues, just listen to some relaxing music before bedtime and enjoy its benefits.
8. Music Improves Mood and Lower Depression
How does music affect brain psychology? Another answer is by improving the mood. Research has proven that listening to music makes you happier, improves your mood and helps in becoming more self-aware. Listening to positive music daily improved mood and lowered depression after just two weeks. Classical and meditation music was the most effective while heavy metal and techno music had the reverse effect. So, make sure you play the right kind of music to reap its psychological benefits.
9. Music May Treat Several Psychological Disorders
Studies found that music therapy was safe and effective for several psychological disorders like anxiety, depression, dementia, neurological conditions like Parkinson’s disease, and was effective in the case of stroke patients too.
Conclusion
How music affects brain psychology? It entertains, motivates, improves moods, battles depression, and increases concentration. And we are just getting started on the several advantages that listening to music provides. Incorporate music into your daily life, feel happy and relaxed and reap a wide variety of psychological benefits as well.
