Active Aging Presented by Public Health Seattle-King County
If you feel happy while tapping your feet and singing along or listening to your favorite song, you’re far from alone. And believe it or not, there’s a scientific reason for it! Studies show that music positively impacts the brain and can boost memory, mood, and mental wellness.
You’ve likely experienced how certain songs conjure cherished childhood moments, important milestones, or particularly memorable events or occasions in your life. Or perhaps playing the piano or listening to classical music keeps you calm and reduces stress.
So, how does music affect the brain, and how can music lift someone’s mood? Let’s dive a little deeper.
How Does Music Affect the Brain?
Johns Hopkins Medicine describes the brain as “a complex organ that controls thought, memory, emotion, touch, motor skills, vision, breathing, temperature, hunger, and every process that regulates our body.”
The brain sends and receives chemical and electrical signals throughout the body as it works. And music stimulates just about every part of the brain. Harvard Health notes that music activates the auditory cortex as you hear it. It also triggers and synchronizes the emotional parts of your brain.
Music also impacts cerebral regions and pathways related to “well-being, learning, cognitive function, quality of life, and happiness,” Harvard Health adds.
The only other phenomenon that activates a multitude of brain networks simultaneously is when you take part in social activities.
How Does Music Invoke Memories and Lift Your Mood?
Music often accompanies many milestones, such as the first dance as a married couple, a high school graduation ceremony, the song on the radio for a first kiss, or the piece you played at a piano recital.
The Global Council on Brain Health’s (GCBH) “Music on Our Minds” report explores research showing music’s positive impact on emotional well-being, such as decreasing anxiety, elevating mood, and coping with stress.
The report notes that musical training helps build cognitive reserve — (a feature of the brain’s plasticity that helps people remember, reason, pay attention, and make judgments). Music lessons during adulthood help build cognitive reserve and “seems to result in lower risk of dementia,” the report adds.
Music therapy also improves mental wellness by healing trauma, building resilience, and reducing anxiety, according to Psychiatry.org.
Ways to Enjoy and Engage in Musical Activities
Enjoying and engaging in musical activities has many proven benefits. They are fun and enriching experiences for people of all ages, including adults 65 and older.
If you need some inspiration, try these fun ways to incorporate music into your life:
- Dance. You don’t need professional training; just move your body to the beat. You can do this standing or sitting, in a group or alone. Dancing is a physical exercise that also promotes social interaction.
- Listen to your favorite songs to find comfort and evoke positive memories.
- If you feel depressed or unhappy, try listening to a song you know makes you feel happy.
- To stimulate your brain, listen to new music.
- Turn on some tunes and exercise (be sure to follow your doctor’s guidance on any physical or medical restrictions).
- Make your own music, whether you sing, play your favorite instrument, or learn to play a new instrument.
Reap the Benefits of Learning to Play an Instrument
Speaking of making music, learning to play a musical instrument has multiple benefits for older adults, including improving verbal memory, according to a 2023 Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience study. Another study published in BMC Neurology journal in 2022 found that playing a musical instrument was significantly associated with a decreased risk of dementia.
When you play an instrument, neurons fire in your brain, which gives it a workout — and can even create new neurons, notes Larry Sherman, professor of neuroscience at the Oregon Health & Science University and author of the book “Every Brain Needs Music: The Neuroscience of Making and Listening to Music.”
Music therapist Alexis Baker works with older adults in Oregon and recommends learning these instruments in an AARP interview:
- Guitar: It is portable, helps with dexterity, and you can play songs with a few chords.
- Ukulele: You can play thousands of songs with four chords.
- Piano: Good for hand/eye coordination, and you can learn 12 keys that are repeated over and over.
- Harmonica: You only play it in one key, and it doesn’t take a lot of breath to inhale and exhale over the holes as you make notes.
- Percussion: You can play rhythm with little experience on a hand drum or tambourine.
- Sing: Your voice is a beautiful, free instrument. Learning to sing on key can happen over time by matching pitch and improving your tone.
Tune in to Music Apps
You can listen to your favorite musical genre, songs, and artists and build playlists by tuning in to music apps for your smartphone, tablet, or computer, like Spotify, Pandora, or Apple Music.
Or, if you would prefer listening to calming, relaxing music, try apps that feature soothing music and sounds, like Calm and BetterSleep.
Music and your mind have a strong connection, and you can reap the benefits by enjoying it in multiple ways.
Active Aging is presented by Public Health- Seattle & King County. Public Health- Seattle & King County recognizes the important and untold stories of innovation, service, and sacrifice by the Black community and supports efforts to improve equity and achieve social justice. We want everyone to get health insurance and access health care. Visit www.kingcounty.gov/health for health insurance, flu and COVID-19 testing locations.
