Here’s an interesting study which split stroke patients into three groups – one group listened to music of their choice, one to audio books and the third didn’t listen to anything other than the sounds around them.
After three months, verbal memory improved by 60% in the music group, compared with18% in the audio book group, and 29% in the non-listeners. Focused attention – the ability to control and perform mental operations and resolve conflicts – improved by 17% in the music group, but not at all in the other two groups. In addition, patients in the music group were less likely to be depressed, or confused.
The researchers point out that
during the first weeks and months after stroke, the patients typically spend about three-quarters of their time each day in non-therapeutic activities, mostly in their rooms, inactive and without interaction, even although this time-window is ideal for rehabilitative training from the point of view of brain plasticity. “Our research shows for the first time that listening to music during this crucial period can enhance cognitive recovery and prevent negative mood, and it has the advantage that it is cheap and easy to organise.”
What a great idea! And how interesting. I’ve often felt that a lot of hospital time for patients is empty and involves no explicit therapeutic intervention. Yes, the physical environment of the hospital, if well designed, can contribute a therapeutic influence, but not many hospitals are designed that way, and even in the ones that are, it strikes me as a good idea to fill more of the patients’ average day with therapeutic interventions.
This final paragraph in the BBC’s report of this work really struck me –
Dr Isabel Lee, of The Stroke Association, welcomed the research. However, she said: “Further research into the effect of music on stroke patients needs to be undertaken before any widespread use, as presently the mechanisms of any effect remain unclear.”
Really? We’d better not allow stroke patients to choose to listen to music they like until we understand the “mechanism of action”? Has it come to this? Is this an important thing for science to discover? How music works???
Well said Bob! The mechanism of action of music..how preposterous. Surprised they didn’t say they needed to explore the horrible negative reactions that could occur if a patient loved Chopin and instead got their least favourite composer Bach instead. Holy crap! Could put them back days in their recovery. 🙂 Music, petting cute loveable animals, hugs and touch from loved ones…they are so intuitively therapeutic and human do we need to know which neurons and stimulus they touch to know they are doing good?
Why then, do they have the term “musical learner” for those studying how we learn? Seems to me there isn’t enough “cross pollination” of ideas between scientists doing studies, much less doctors! According to the Multiple Intelligence Survey, I am a musical learner. Years ago when I participated, I scored like this:
Linguistic 32
Mathematics 34
Visual/Spatial 33
Body/Kinesthetic 38
Naturalistic 38
Music 45
Interpersonal 32
Intrapersonal 39
http://www.ldrc.ca/projects/projects.php?id=42
I laughed but wasn’t surprised to see that I’m almost dead even on all the learning styles, with music being just ahead of the others. I find myself playing music to do household chores, and “dancing” while doing them. I’m told it’s fun to watch me sweep. I’m not even concious of “keeping a beat” while I do things most of the time.
Isn’t it pretty much an accepted (though perhaps not completely understood) fact that music has a PROFOUND positive impact on how our brains do what they do?
I’ve been playing a collection of Mozart for my daughters at bedtime every night of their lives (well, when we’re at home, anyway). It calms them, it makes them happy and comfortable, it helps them sleep.
Does it make them smarter? I don’t know, but I don’t doubt it, either (though I DO worry that, as budding musicians, they’re going to start yawning whenever a “nite-nite music” piece of Mozart comes up on their band playllists…).
Ha! ha! mrschili – yes, you’ve got to be careful what you expose your children to!
Cristal, I’m totally with you on this – not so keen on the cute animals bit myself but hugs are always appreciated!
That’s such an interesting analysis KatK – I haven’t seen one like that before – I was aware of the visual/kinesthetic/aural one – but not this one with its greater range of parameters. Thanks for including the link