Music and mental health
GET OUTDOORS, and you just might improve your health and well-being—the gentle sounds of moving water, the rustling of leaves in the trees. You may drop your blood pressure and stress levels. You may also improve your mood and focus, too.
Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth. — Henry David Thoreau
How do sounds change our brain? Researchers at Brighton and Sussex Medical School (England) provide some answers. They used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to examine brain activity in subjects as they listened to sounds recorded from either artificial or natural environments. The scientists also monitored autonomic nervous system activity via minute changes in heart rate.
Here are their findings: Listening to natural sounds resulted in brain connectivity reflective of an outward focus of attention. This appeared similar to a state of daydreaming. On the other hand, artificial sounds led the brain to “turn inward,” a state seen with anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
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