Music; How Does It Affect You?

Health & Fitness

Music, the soul healer, is the art practiced both the good and the bad at heart.  All religions, both good and bad practice some form of music in carrying out their religious rites.
Music had been defined by some as the vocal or instrumental sounds (or both combined) in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony and expression of emotion. Some also said it’s the written or printed signs representing vocal or instrumental sound, and the definitions continue.
I would say that the definition of music is based on your own perspective, how you view it, what effect it has on you anytime you listen to or watch a video.
For me, I would say that music is the art of life which affects or is involved in our everyday way of life. It’s part of us and we are part of it.
Some Of The Ways Music Affect Us Are:
For me, I love to listen to music mostly when I am alone in my hostel room or taking a walk along the Secondary School field. It helps me to me to meditate on some things happening in my life. I also love to listen to Nigerian songs while writing, like this one.
New research shows that even sad music can lift your mood, while other studies suggest music can boost happiness and reduce anxiety. From the drum beats of our ancestors to today’s unlimited streaming services, music is an integral part of the human experience. Researchers have pondered the possible therapeutic and mind boosting benefits of music for centuries. 
Even sad music brings most listeners’ pleasure and comfort according to recent research from Durham University in the United Kingdom and University of Jyvaskyla in Finland, publish in PLOS ONE. Conversely, the study found that for some people, sad music can cause negative feelings of profound grief. The research involved three surveys of more than 2,400 people in the United Kingdom and Finland, experiences associated with listening to sad music. The majority of experiences reported by participants were positive.
“The results help us to pinpoint the ways people regulate their mood with the help of music as well as how music rehabilitation and music therapy might tap into these processes of comfort, relief, and enjoyment,” said lead author, Toumas  Eerola, Ph.D. a professor of music cognition at Durham University, in a press release. He also said the study may help find reasons for both listening to and avoiding sad music. SOURCE: www.healthline.com
Music  is one of the few activities that involves using the whole brain. It is intrinsic to all cultures and has suprising benefits not only for learning language, improving memory and focusing attention, but also for physical coordination and development. It also has been noted that not all types of music have favorable effects. It could be distracting if its too loud too jarring, or if it competes for our attention with what we are trying to do. But for the most part, exposure to classic music has been beneficial effects. 
It also helps in Pain Relief: Overall, music does have positive effects on pain management. Music can help reduce both sensation and distress of both chronic pain and post operative pain. 
Listening to music can reduce chronic pain from a range of painful conditions including osteoarthritis, disc problems and rheumatoid arthritis by up to 21% and depression up to 25%, according to a paper in the latest UK- based Journal of Advanced Nursing. 
Music is increasingly used in hospitals to reduce the need for medication during childbirth, to reduce post operative pain and complement the use of anesthesia during surgery.
There are several theories about how music positively affects perceived pain:
Music reduces repulsive effects,
It may give the patient a sense of control,
Music causes the body to release endorphins to counteract pain,
Slow music relaxes the body by slowing breathing and heart beat.
It Reduces  Blood Pressure:  By playing recordings of relaxing music every morning and evening, people with high blood pressure can train themselves to lower their blood pressure and keep it low.
Medicine for the Heart: Music is good for your heart. Research shows that it is musical tempo, rather than style.
Promotes Post-Stroke Recovery :A daily portion of one’s daily favorite pop melodies, classical music or jazz, can speed recover from debilitating strokes, according to the latest research. Listening to classical music improves visual attention in patients with unilateral neglect after stroke. Recent research has shown that listening to music after stroke only promotes behavioral recovery, but also induces fine- grained neuroanatomical changes in the recovering brain.
Chronic Headache and migraine remedy: Music can help migraine and chronic headache sufferers reduce the intensity, frequency and duration of headaches.
Music Boosts Immunity: Music can boost how the immune functions. Scientists explain that a particular type of music can create a positive and profound emotional experience which leads to secretion of immune-boosting hormones. This helps contribute to a reduction in the factors responsible for illness. Listening to music or singing can reduce levels of stress-related hormone cortisol. Higher level of cortisol can lead to a digressed immune response. 
Anti- seizure effects: The latest 2014 study revealed that listening to Mozart k 448 (sonata for two pianos in D major) reduced seizure recurrence and epileptic form discharges in children epilepsy.
With all this wonder benefits and more, I think you should start giving music a try. You won’t regret it. A
And if you are already into music, then you are in the REAL world. At least this article is saying that loving is one of the best habits to have!
What do you think about this article?