Our favorite songs may move us deeply, but do they also benefit us in other ways? Daniel Levitin is a neuroscientist, musician and visiting professor at UCLA. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the many ways the brain responds to music —from warding off disease to helping those who stutter to releasing oxytocin — and what science is uncovering about this phenomenon. His book is “I Heard There Was a Secret Chord: Music as Medicine.”
How to beat the blues
By Madelyn Walton, Think Intern
We hear music everywhere we go, and we turn to specific genres based on our moods. Whether we are grocery shopping, exercising, or driving home from work, music plays a role in our daily lives. Researchers have also found that music can be used as a healing mechanism to aid injuries, psychological disorders, and neurological health.
Daniel Levitin, neuroscientist and author of “I Heard There Was a Secret Chord: Music as Medicine,” told “Think” host Krys Boyd about the benefits that come with performing your own music. He notes that “it helps you build up new neural pathways that strengthen your ability to do a variety of things.” For example, reading music is neuroprotective, he says, and ultimately preserves brain power.
Our brain is the control center, and we encode music and sound that reintroduces itself as we get older. For example, Levitin mentions Alzheimer’s and dementia. Advance stages of these diseases can lead to memory loss. Playing music from these patients’ youth can refresh their mind and reinforce their memory.
“Music is resistant to disease and degradation. “They [patients] suddenly find who they are again. They connect with that earlier self,” says Levitin.
Another factor associated with music therapy is the intimate experience it brings. When we listen alone, we usually wear headphones or find a secluded space. The music lingers in our head and allows us to feel various senses. Levitin’s study of the ventral tegmental area of the brain discovered that “dopamine is released when you listen to music you like.” The benefits multiply if you enjoy singing. Not only is the act more effortless than talking, but it also gives you serotonin while releasing stress hormones.
Music is an art that can be used for healing and entertainment. As we listen to our playlists, we can identify how we are feeling in the moment and experience the potential benefits it brings.
