Music Gets You Moving and More
by: CAROL DUNES
Music has been around since ancient times. It is part
of every known culture. It can get your foot tapping, lift
your mood, and even help you recall a distant memory.
Did you know that music can bring other health
music stimulates healthier bodies and minds.
Robert Finkelstein, who co-leads NIH’s music and health
initiative.
learn more about how the brain works, what parts of
the brain respond to music, and how music might help
explains.
Your Brain on Music
The brain is a complex processing hub. It’s the control
center of your nervous system, the network of nerve
cells that carry messages to and from your body and the
brain. A healthy brain tries to make sense of the world
around you and the constant information it receives,
including sound and music.
processing in the brain, the better the brain becomes at
making sense of sound and the world around us. Music
Music and other sounds enter the ear as sound
waves. These create vibrations on our eardrum that
are transformed into electrical signals. The electrical
signals travel up the auditory nerve to the brain’s
auditory cortex. This brain area interprets the sound
into something we recognize and understand.
sound. Using techniques that take pictures of the brain,
brain areas. When music stimulates the brain, it shows
in emotion, memory, and even physical movement.
explains. NIH-funded scientists are investigating
whether music can help patients with movement
disorders, like Parkinson’s disease. Patients with this
condition slowly lose their ability to walk and move over
time.
Finkelstein says. Another study is looking at how dance
compares to other types of exercise in people with
Parkinson’s disease.
There’s also evidence that music may be helpful
for people with other health conditions, including
Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, traumatic brain injury,
stroke, aphasia, autism, and hearing loss.
Music Therapy
Listening to and making music on your own can bring
therapists are trained in how to use music to meet
the mental, social, and physical needs of people with
2018. February - 18 - vervemagazines.com
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