Can Music Really Beat Drugs In Treating Medical Conditions?

It’s possible that if we took music a little more seriously, we would be in much better health. According to a study conducted by the Psychology Department as McGill University, music is more effective than drugs for a variety of conditions. The study found that music can release natural chemicals and pain relievers in the brain that work quicker and better than drugs do. Via TrueActivist How does it work? According to one of the main researchers in the study, Professor Levitin, music triggers chemical processes in the brain that have healing effects. “We’ve found compelling evidence that musical interventions can play a health care role in settings ranging from operating rooms to family clinics. But even more importantly, we were able to document the neurochemical mechanisms by which music has an effect in four domains: management of mood, stress, immunity and as an aid to social bonding,” Levitin said. Via TrueActivist Some of the chemicals released while listening to music include dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, opioids and cortisol. These are associated with higher levels of motivation and pleasure when engaging in certain activities, which in turn helps with eating disorders and a host of other issues. A major advantage of these chemicals is that they’re natural, so they do not trigger the kind of side effects that you might experience when taking drugs – whether prescribed or not. These chemicals have also been observed to help with stress, social anxiety and poor immunity. Dr. Francis Chandra commented on the study, saying that that these findings could encourage people to limit their dependence on other drugs. “We know music facilitates active neurochemical processes in a symphony of opioids which pharmaceutical intervention has been unable to match. We’ve had residents where we could reduce psychotropic drugs or have them come off, and we could see benefits to staff with improvements in morale and engagement,” he said. Via TrueActivist Music also plays a crucial role in helping people who are struggling with drug dependence. It has also been found that when patients listen to music before surgery, they have lower levels of anxiety compared to patients given anti-anxiety drugs like Xanax or Valium. The medication that we take is meant to act as a catalyst that unlocks the natural chemicals already in us. The advantage of music is that it offers an alternative so that these chemicals are unlocked naturally so we can avoid the toxins that enter our bodies when taking medication. Another study conducted by researchers at Brunel University in the UK found that listening to your favourite music is better than medication in helping you recover from surgery. Patients that listened to music before or after surgery experience faster recovery than those that didn’t. In fact, they reported lower levels of pain than those who used painkillers. Experts agreed with the study’s findings. "Music is a powerful tool with roots deep in every culture and civilization — it is wired deeply into the human brain and soul," Dr. Ron Marino, [...]

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