Dr. Shveata Misra
Our body is tuned to the musical pa terns. This article reviews on the effects of musical patterns on the human physiology. Music therefore developed as a separate discipline, endeavouring to incorporate the legitimate use of music with human physiology in context to medical framework. It has been reported that music has beneficial effects on cardiovascular parameters, whereas heavy metal or techno are without healthy effects. During my research it has been observed that music influence central physiological variables like blood pressure, heart rate, respiration, EEG measurements, body temperature and galvanic skin response. Music influences immune and endocrine function. The existing research literature shows growing knowledge of how music can ameliorate pain, anxiety, nausea, fatigue and depression.
Everything in our universe is in a sense of vibration. Matter is made up of certain types of waves or pulsing vibration. Chemistry expert Dr. Donald Hatch Andrews puts it, “we are finding that the universe is composed not of matter but of music”. Music is strange stuff. It is clearly different from language. People use it to communicate things-especially their emotions. And when allied with speech in a song, it is one of the most powerful means of communication that humans have.
Body Responses to Music
In a study by Updike investigating the physiological and emotional responses of patients awaiting an elective plastic surgery procedure to a 30 minute taped music program, several variables were measured. Systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, pulse rate, mean arterial pressure and a double product index (DPI) were obtained before and after the music listening. Every variable decreased markedly and the most significant emotional effect appeared to be an experience shift in patient’s awareness towards a more relaxed calm state. This was supported by Zakharova’ in a study of Conservatory students showing that music exerted complex influences on the number of neurophysiological reactions changes the flow of excitations in the cortico-thalmic and cortico-limbic circles. He found that listening to music is accompanied with a partial replacement of the dominating alpha-rhythm by activity in the frequency range of beta-, theta-, and delta-waves and with a change of some vegetative reactions. Two studies conducted to examine the effect of music on analouged labor pain using nulliparous subjects also revealed significant decreases to heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Metera compared the effect of soothing and exciting music on the respiratory function in man and particularly on minute oxygen consumption and basal metabolic rate. Soothing music decreased minute ventilation, minute oxygen consumption and basal metabolic rate. He found exciting music slightly increased these parameters. Some empirical evidence concerning the relation between music and digestion comes from the eminent Russian psychologist Ivan P Pavlov whose earlier studies were concerned with the digestive process. He discovered the conditioned reflex whereby music that aroused pleasurable emotions promotes the floe of gastric juices. Sugarman later confirmed in his paper entitled “Music Therapy of Psychosomatic Disturbance” that, the physiological reactions in students due to exposure to distorted sound of 400 Hz frequency, 109 db intensity and 0.5 sec duration are documented as follows: Systolic and diastolic blood pressure was increased 4-11 seconds after the intense auditory stimulus. Afterwards blood pressure was decreased and reached the normal level a minute after. This study shows a temporarily increased blood pressure.
The Effect of Music on Pain
As Chiropractors, it is easy to forget that many patients in the waiting room may be in pain. Music has been used in hospitals for years often as an adjunct to local anaesthesia. Rusca fitted his patients with a set of ear phones during spinal anaesthesia. Thus the patient heard only music chosen to suit his tastes. Not only was the operation painless, but it became associated with a pleasurable experience.
Anxiety
Many studies have supported the concept of the effect of the music on anxiety, anger and depression and some work has been done in the same context. In 1989 French study of Electro-physiologic recordings of certain neurovegetative manifestations produced by a sonic environment in the dental office, demonstrated and evaluated the stressing and relaxing power of music or noise. The high speed drill and telephone represent the most stressing elements in the dental office and show an intense electrodermal activity and respiratory disturbances. On the contrary, slow, regular, melodious and harmonious music such as JS Back’s Aria, induce a subjective and relaxing climate with neurovegetative reaction characteristic of a state of physiological and demonstrated decreased anxiety. Music included Beethoven’s Moonlight sonata, Wagner’s Evening Star and Debussey’s Clair de la Lune.
Emotions
Listening to music can be emotionally arousing. Jensen examined the effect of music on 85 students within a disclosure setting. The study involved speaking of the most significant event of the subject’s life with and without background music. The results confirmed the effect of music on the disclosure topics, enhanced cognitive expression and enjoyment of classical music.
In a comparison of normal subjects and psychiatric patients music was experienced in the same way with only small differences. However, when evaluated each psychiatric group independently several differences were demonstrated. Schizophrenic patients may experience music more attractive than normal subjects. Depressive and anxiety neurotics experience music as less attractive than normal subjects. Obsessive compulsive patients are more sensitive to music than normal subjects. In a different study, a comparison of two pieces of music with different tempo, slow and fast, revealed a difference in experiencing of music between normal subjects and patients with mania. Patients with mania associated fast tempo with positive emotions and declared attraction to it, with the control group having the same emotions with slow tempo music.
Conclusion
There is no doubt that music can have powerful effects on the human body. This research paper has revealed the beneficial effects of the musical patterns on the human physiology. Obviously this research paper to date is still in its infancy stages however, I believe we can enhance with more experiences in near future.
(The author is music psychologist and Therapist)
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