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healthbriefs
Music Makes Exercise Easier L
istening to music
during a workout or any extended, physically demanding activity can reduce fatigue and improve performance. New research published in Psychophysiology shows that as individuals work out, their attention gradually shifts from the activity around them to internal sensations. Over an extended period, this attention shift creates a sense of exertion. Listening to music while exercising can help shift focus away from the internal fatigue and back to the external world. Researchers from the UK’s Brunel University and University of London tested 19 healthy adults that performed two physical exertion tests while listening to either music or silence. The scientists monitored brain activity using EEG and measured task performance. While listening to music, participants showed both reduced fatigue and decreased stress-related brainwaves. They also performed their tasks more effectively than they did when music wasn’t being played.
Silence De-Stresses the Brain T
he human brain does not function optimally in society’s noise-fi lled environment. The brain, like the body, needs rest to function, and that comes with silence. A recent study in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience discovered that the brain is able to integrate both internal and external information into a “conscious workspace” when resting. Constant distractions and noises can detract from the brain’s ability to process critical information. Noise also elevates stress hormone levels within the brain. Research published earlier in Psychological Science examined the effects that the relocation of the main Munich airport, in Germany, had on children’s health and cognition. Gary W. Evans, researcher and professor of human ecology at Cornell University, notes that when exposed to constant noise, children develop a stress response that causes them to ignore it. The study’s subjects tuned out both harmful sounds and stimuli that they should be paying attention to, including speech. Silence has the opposite effect, releasing tension in brain and body. Exposure to chronic noise can also hinder children’s cognitive development, according to a study from the World Health Organization and the European Commission Joint Research Centre; this includes language skills and reading ability. To help counter modern noise pollution, attention restoration theory suggests that individuals placed in environments with lower levels of sensory input can recover some of the cognitive abilities they have lost.
Exercising Women Have Fewer C-Sections A
recent study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology reports that regular exercise during pregnancy can reduce the rate of Cesarean deliveries. Conducted by Thomas Jefferson University Medical College researchers, the study
followed more than 2,000 pregnant women split into two randomized groups. Half of them exercised 35 to 90 minutes, three to four times a week, while the others did not. Just under 18 percent of the women in the exercise group ended up having Cesarean deliveries versus 22 percent in the non-exercising group. Exercising during pregnancy also appears to improve gestational health. The
study participants that worked out regularly experienced a lower incidence of both hypertensive disorders and diabetes mellitus.
All profound things and emotions of things are preceded and
attended by silence. ~Herman Melville
12
Central Florida natural awakenings
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