Healthy living
Body matters
Joyful music good for the heart
Listening to music that makes you feel happy may have the added bonus of being good for your heart, say scientists from the University of Maryland School of Medicine in the US
The study, which was presented at the Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association, found that when healthy participants listened to music that filled them with joy, their blood vessels expanded, increasing blood flow. The same team found similar responses in an earlier study, which looked at the effects of laughter on the cardiovascular system.
'We had previously demonstrated that positive emotions, such as laughter, were good for vascular health. So, a logical question was whether other emotions, such as those evoked by music, have a similar effect,' says lead researcher Michael Miller, associate professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. 'We knew that individual people would react differently to different types of music, so in this study, we enabled participants to select music based upon their likes and dislikes.'
The study involved 10 healthy non-smokers. Participants were exposed to four different types of stimuli for 30 minutes. The first phase involved their favourite music, the second music that made them feel anxious, the third used relaxation tapes and in a fourth session the subjects were shown films designed to make them laugh. Before and after each phase the researchers measured the blood vessels of the volunteers.
The team found that listening to joyful music increased blood vessel diameter by 26 per cent while the stressful music narrowed the vessels by six per cent. Watching funny films also showed a healthy response with a 19 per cent increase while relaxation tapes were less successful with only an 11 per cent blood vessel expansion.
Most of the participants chose country music as their favourite while 'heavy metal' stressed them out.
Miller argues that listening to joyful music may cause endorphins or 'happy chemicals' to be released from the brain resulting in the healthy vascular response.
'Needless to say, these results were music to my ears because they signal another preventive strategy that we may incorporate in our daily lives to promote heart health,' said Miller.
Kelly-Ann Prime, cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation (BHF), welcomed the research;
'This small study adds to the work BHF scientists are doing to understand how positive emotional state and relaxation can contribute to our well-being,' said Prime. 'People relax in different ways and it may be that music is key for some while for others curling up with a good book or taking a long walk is just as beneficial. It may be that different people find relaxation in different types of music, too.'
More on holistic health
- How to be happier: advice from the world's happiest man
- Thirty ways to live a longer and happier life
- Music can help with stroke recovery
- Your top ten heart health questions answered
- Dance yourself healthy
- Joyful music: listen to a clip of the Buena Vista Social Club for instant feelgood factor
- Chat about your favourite music at Saga Zone
Information on this site is for interest only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should consult your own doctor about any specific health concerns.
