Health: How music affects our lives positively and negatively

How many times have you heard someone say I am very stressed out I want to listen to music Most of us choose to listen to different genres of music depending on our mood Scientifically listening to music stimulates the production of dopamine in the brain The brain reacts similarly to the sight of delicious food or anything that lookssounds interestingWhen a person listens to good music more blood flows to these parts and to the nerve ends which release this chemical Good music relaxes and opens up the endothelium of blood vessels while listening to bad music closes the endothelium leading to stress and mental fatigueMusic for the soulKamakshi and Vishala Khurana who founded a company called The Sound Space which practices music therapy believe that music has a miraculous power to heal and that sound has the capacity to influence every aspect of a human being from the time of conception They conduct specialised workshops including sound for better concentration music therapy and an easy and fun filled introduction to Indian Classical music for childrenMusic should constitute a major part of our lives Listening to the right music has innumerable benefits such as lowering stress levels reducing depression and anxiety and maintaining a happy balanced and calm homeofficetravel environment Theres nothing like too much music Very loud music can adversely affect the ears But music only benefits our brain by releasing endorphins which elevates ones mood It is in fact a wonderful stimulant says Vishala Khurana cofounder Sound SpaceAshutosh Phatak founder and teacher True School Of Music asserts Life is full of music and theres no better way to live it It doesnt have to mean sitting down and consuming albums but theres music everywhere mdash in the rhythm of a local trains movement or in the sound of the waves at high tide People tend to watch more music than listen to it these days He feels that if more people listened to music all the time they would be calmer and better disposed to handle stressWhats your genreThe kind of music one listens to determines ones reaction to it No genre is harmful but there is a preferable choice in different situations For instance studies have found that percussion stimulates the left side of the brain so if one were solving Mathematics problems or having to reach a logical conclusion that music would be beneficial Similarly for an artiste instrumental music or Soul would work better explains KhuranaAccording to Dr Shaan Manohar ENT specialist Nanavati Hospital Japan has done a study on applying music to water as it freezes and check the patterns of crystals formed It was concluded that loud drumbeats and music with violent poetry tend to have a destructive effect on the crystals versus Classical music soft love tracks or devotional lyrics had an enhancing effect on the crystal formationLoud drumbeats are also known to interfere with the pace of the heart in the very young and the elderly It is a known fact that listening to Classical music enhances the mathematical ability of a growing child Also chanting helps release endorphins in the body creating a calm person full of positive energyAsk the doctorTo protect against hearing damage ones 24hour noise exposure at the ear should not exceed 70 dB Dr Manohar tells us According to Dr Dipak Desai Consultant ENT Wockhardt Hospital Mumbai Central one should keep the volume at 60 of the total volume of a particular deviceLouder than that can cause damage It is safe to listen to music continuously for an hour only post that one should take a short break before resuming he shares Pediatricians dont recommend headphones for children For starters they dont standardise the volume so some songs may jump out and be louder than othersThis apart headphones tend to cut out ambient sound and external stimuli This reduces awareness among children who will only end up listening to the music Yet music is a vital developmental tool for kids It is preferable to listen to music via speakers of a music system advises PhatakWhats on your playlistgt Blues can calm the nerves and slow down the heart rategt Rock and Punk can boost your mood levels It can also give you an adrenaline and energy boostgt Reggae has been found to actually help with anger issues It is also believed that this genre calms the heart and brings it to the healthy rategt Classical music is played to steady the breath uplift the mood and has the power to calm an individual down This kind of music has a beneficial effect on the brain and helps to coordinate left and right brain activitymdashKamakshi and Vishala Khurana Sound Space