Practical Applications of Music for Neurodegenerative Disease, Immune Dysfunction, and Hormonal Imbalance


In the aforementioned study where brain activity was examined during music listening experiences, similar brain patterns were generated irrespective of the vocal and lyrical qualities, rhythmic attributes, and melodic and harmonic features of the music. Be- cause the functional connectivity invoked by listening to music is governed by the listener’s preference, nursing homes and other palliative care facilities should cater music to the tastes of their patient population for maximal effect. The processing of emotionally-laden experiences in the brain,


which may be impaired in psychiatric disorders, dementia, Al- zheimer’s, and other neurodegenerative diseases, may be engaged when music is incorporated into neurologic remediation therapies. For example, studies of Alzheimer’s patients have proven that listening to music from their past can act as a catalyst for the re- calling of other long-term memories via reconfiguration of exist- ing neuronal networks. Other studies show that listening to music can enhance recovery of cognitive function post-stroke, mitigate symptoms of mood disorders, improve emotional intelligence, and enhance executive brain functions. Not only that, but music has been shown to favorably regulate immunological, psychobiological, and physiological responses. Using music in concert with visual imagery modulates numbers of different immune cell populations such as neutrophils and lymphocytes, which are elements of our first-line innate defenses and secondary adaptive immune responses. When used as an adjunctive entraining method as part of a guided imagery exercise, music boosts levels of secretory IgA (SIgA), an antibody often depleted in immunocompromised or chronically ill individuals which is important in the protection of the digestive lining and other mucus membranes . Studies have even shown that listening to Mozart, but not Beethoven, reduced the allergic ‘skin wheal’ response induced by latex and decreased production of immu- noglobulin E (IgE), the antibody associated with allergy. Music may also buffer the stress-induced increase in stress hormones, and affect levels of the endogenous pain-relieving opioid called beta-endorphin. When incorporated into an exercise regimen, music may counteract the increases in heart rate and blood pressure, and enable enhanced rates of lactate clearance to prevent muscle soreness. It likewise may reduce exercise-in- duced release of catecholamine hormones such as norepineph- rine, one of the fight-or-flight chemicals of the sympathetic nervous system. Therefore, due to its effects on the endocrine and immune systems, which are often disrupted in metabolic, autoimmune, psychiatric, and neurodegenerative disease, music may represent a promising therapy for conditions of diverse pathophysiology. Music is primal. It is an enveloping sanctuary that consoles us in our desperation, that liberates us from the dark abyss of alienation and despair. It is a reprieve from the burdens we carry and a force of solidarity, that narrows the chasm between cultures and engenders sacred union and spiritual experience. It is a hall- mark of the human condition, and healing power to be reckoned with.


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