A growing number of studies have provided proof of how music can benefit the human body. Findings of new research now show that music can be particularly beneficial for people diagnosed with breast cancer, a condition that affects about 237,000 women and 2,100 men in the United States per year.
Effects of Music on Breast Cancer Patients
Researchers from Taipei Medical University in Taiwan have found that listening to music can ease the pain and fatigue experienced by cancer patients. The study also showed that listening to music can help with unwanted symptoms experienced by these patients, which include concentration difficulties and loss of appetite.
In the research published in the European Journal of Cancer Care in June 2019, researchers Kuei-Ru Chou and colleagues asked a group of breast cancer patients to listen to music for 30 minutes five times a week. The participants chose from a selection of popular, classic, parlor, Taiwanese, and religious music.
Over the course of the 24 week treatment period, the researchers observed that the patients who listened to music in their home experienced a significant reduction in the side effects of cancer and its treatments compared with those in the control group.
According to the patients who received music therapy, listening to music also helped with their physical and psychological well-being because it allowed them to distance from the negative thoughts about their condition.
Music as a Costless Treatment for Cancer Patients
What makes music an ideal treatment for cancer patients is that it can be used in the comfort of the home. It neither involves invasive and painful procedures.
Compared with other forms of healthcare services that are expensive, home-based music intervention is also possible without the burden of additional expenses, which is known to plague cancer patients and their families.
How Music Helps Breast Cancer Patients
The sound of music can trigger the release of dopamine or the so-called happy hormone in the body. It also promotes endorphins and serotonin in the brain. These chemicals are associated with positive emotions and can distract people from negative emotions.
Experts explain that music evoked-emotions can even regulate activities in several areas of the brain.
Thus, music can relieve physical and emotional pain often felt by people who have cancer. Listening to music can also help them find ways to deal with fear, stress, and loneliness.
Other Health Benefits of Music
Music can also benefit cardiovascular health. Heartbeats can match the tempo of what we hear, which can promote deeper breathing patterns and lower blood pressure.
Music is also beneficial to cognitive health. Research has found that music lessons can change the course of the brain’s developments. Learning to play musical instruments or enrolling in voice lessons offered in Lehi can, in fact, have an important influence in a child’s odds for success. Studies have in fact showed that musically-trained children tend to have better mathematical and verbal skills, and more likely to score higher on tests of cognitive flexibility, working memory and IQ, which can increase their chances for success.
