Will your doctor soon prescribe a Verdi opera or a Mozart minuet? We knew that music allowed you to relax, but we did not yet have a scientific explanation for this phenomenon. A team of researchers from McGill University in Quebec therefore conducted research on the benefits of music on stress reduction by analyzing more than 400 documents and studies.
The researchers found that the cortisol, the hormone responsible for stress, diminished when listening to relaxing music. Thus, patients who listened to music before surgery would be less anxious than people who took anxiolytics such as Valium. In addition, music increases motivation and pleasure, decreases stress and excitement, strengthens immune system and consolidates social belonging and self-confidence.
The type of music is obviously important and listening to Metallica will inevitably have a less relaxing effect than a lullaby for a baby … But, for example, one of the studies analyzed shows that group singing releases oxytocin. , a hormone that promotes the feeling of social connection.
Although the elements put forward by the two researchers do not constitute irrefutable scientific evidence, they are interesting avenues to explore to treat certain diseases such asanorexia or depression.