Can Music Calm a Shift Workers Soul?
In this week’s Boston Globe, there was an article about a surgeon, Dr. Claudius Conrad, of Massachusetts General Hospital, who is scientifically testing how music affects surgeons and their patients. Dr. Conrad’s goal is to determine whether music can improve results of surgery and whether it might be used as a medical treatment. What Dr. Conrad is doing is trying to better, is understand why, and how, music works. In a small study published in 2007, Dr. Conrad tested the effects of music on a group of 10 critically ill patients. Half of the group listened to the slow movements of Mozart piano sonatas through headphones for an hour, and the other half heard no music. Those who listened to music needed less sedation, had reduced stress hormone levels, lower blood pressure and lower heart rates.
In a study of surgeons’ reactions to music, to test the effects of music in the operating room, Dr. Conrad created tasks for surgeons to complete on a computer simulator. He tested the speed and accuracy of eight expert surgeons as they performed the tasks under different conditions: in silence; while listening to Mozart; while hearing a different stream of music in each ear (German folk music and death metal). Dr. Conrad found that the dissonant folk and death metal combination increased the time it took the surgeons to do the procedures, but it did not affect their accuracy, as compared to the silence. While listening to Mozart, the surgeons’ speed varied but their accuracy improved, compared with silence.
So, should we all be listening to Mozart? The jury’s still out on that, but it’s looking good. Just today, doctors at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, in another small study, announced that listening to Mozart lowered the quantity of energy premature babies used; possibly meaning they may be able to increase their weight faster. The study measured the energy expenditure of 20 infants born pre-term while listening to Mozart in their incubators. A study of seniors by The College of Nursing at Seattle University in Washington, found that listening to music such as Mozart or to relaxation tapes three or more times a week, resulted in lower blood pressure in the seniors participating in the study.
Many shift workers experience great stress in managing their variable work schedules. This stress can lead to chronic health conditions such as gastrointestinal disease, higher cardiovascular risk, and sleep disorders, amongst others. Shift workers often cope by taking stimulants or drinking coffee to stay awake and drinking alcohol, thinking it will help them sleep. Perhaps listening to music would provide both a more holistic treatment to chronic health conditions, as well as be a healthier coping mechanism.*
Researchers from the Arts and Quality of Life Research Center at Temple University in Philadelphia reviewed data from 23 studies, including 1,461 patients. They concluded that listening to music provided some relief for coronary heart disease patients suffering from anxiety, by reducing heart rate and blood pressure. Music listening also seemed to improve mood, although not amongst those suffering from depression due to the disease. Another study, this one reported in the UK-based Journal of Advanced Nursing, found that llistening to music reduced chronic pain by up to 21% and depression by up to 25%. The researchers also reported that listening to music also makes people feel more in control of their pain and less disabled by their condition.
Many shift workers report that they listen to music while falling asleep. It’s true - coming home in the morning after working all night, our bodies circadian rhythms are telling us to wake up, not sleep. Despite feeling so drowsy the whole ride home from work, sometimes, when shift workers get into bed, they’re wide awake. A 2008 study done by University of Michigan found that among 31 elderly patients, those that listened to music at bedtime for three weeks significantly improved their sleep quality, as opposed to those who did not. According to a study by the Cleveland Clinic, listening to melodic music decreases the activity of individual neurons in the deep brain; the physical responses to the calming music ranged from patients' closing their eyes to falling asleep.
It looks like those shift workers who listened to music to induce sleep had it right!
In this week’s Boston Globe, there was an article about a surgeon, Dr. Claudius Conrad, of Massachusetts General Hospital, who is scientifically testing how music affects surgeons and their patients. Dr. Conrad’s goal is to determine whether music can improve results of surgery and whether it might be used as a medical treatment. What Dr. Conrad is doing is trying to better, is understand why, and how, music works. In a small study published in 2007, Dr. Conrad tested the effects of music on a group of 10 critically ill patients. Half of the group listened to the slow movements of Mozart piano sonatas through headphones for an hour, and the other half heard no music. Those who listened to music needed less sedation, had reduced stress hormone levels, lower blood pressure and lower heart rates.
In a study of surgeons’ reactions to music, to test the effects of music in the operating room, Dr. Conrad created tasks for surgeons to complete on a computer simulator. He tested the speed and accuracy of eight expert surgeons as they performed the tasks under different conditions: in silence; while listening to Mozart; while hearing a different stream of music in each ear (German folk music and death metal). Dr. Conrad found that the dissonant folk and death metal combination increased the time it took the surgeons to do the procedures, but it did not affect their accuracy, as compared to the silence. While listening to Mozart, the surgeons’ speed varied but their accuracy improved, compared with silence.
So, should we all be listening to Mozart? The jury’s still out on that, but it’s looking good. Just today, doctors at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, in another small study, announced that listening to Mozart lowered the quantity of energy premature babies used; possibly meaning they may be able to increase their weight faster. The study measured the energy expenditure of 20 infants born pre-term while listening to Mozart in their incubators. A study of seniors by The College of Nursing at Seattle University in Washington, found that listening to music such as Mozart or to relaxation tapes three or more times a week, resulted in lower blood pressure in the seniors participating in the study.
Many shift workers experience great stress in managing their variable work schedules. This stress can lead to chronic health conditions such as gastrointestinal disease, higher cardiovascular risk, and sleep disorders, amongst others. Shift workers often cope by taking stimulants or drinking coffee to stay awake and drinking alcohol, thinking it will help them sleep. Perhaps listening to music would provide both a more holistic treatment to chronic health conditions, as well as be a healthier coping mechanism.*
Researchers from the Arts and Quality of Life Research Center at Temple University in Philadelphia reviewed data from 23 studies, including 1,461 patients. They concluded that listening to music provided some relief for coronary heart disease patients suffering from anxiety, by reducing heart rate and blood pressure. Music listening also seemed to improve mood, although not amongst those suffering from depression due to the disease. Another study, this one reported in the UK-based Journal of Advanced Nursing, found that llistening to music reduced chronic pain by up to 21% and depression by up to 25%. The researchers also reported that listening to music also makes people feel more in control of their pain and less disabled by their condition.
Many shift workers report that they listen to music while falling asleep. It’s true - coming home in the morning after working all night, our bodies circadian rhythms are telling us to wake up, not sleep. Despite feeling so drowsy the whole ride home from work, sometimes, when shift workers get into bed, they’re wide awake. A 2008 study done by University of Michigan found that among 31 elderly patients, those that listened to music at bedtime for three weeks significantly improved their sleep quality, as opposed to those who did not. According to a study by the Cleveland Clinic, listening to melodic music decreases the activity of individual neurons in the deep brain; the physical responses to the calming music ranged from patients' closing their eyes to falling asleep.
It looks like those shift workers who listened to music to induce sleep had it right!
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