Music keeps rhythm for heart and lungs

"Cardiovascular and breathing rates consistently fall into step with musical crescendos and rhythms, according to a controlled clinical trial that may give impetus to new musical therapies. Contrary to the conventional view of music as an intensely personal medium, researchers found that the same piece of music had similar cardiovascular effects on all subjects. Taking advantage of these interactions may open the way to standardized treatments for blood pressure control and rehabilitation, Luciano Bernardi, MD, of Pavia University in Pavia, Italy, and colleagues wrote in the June 30 issue of Circulation."

The power of music: it's a real heart opener

If you didn't catch the white coat and the stethoscope, you might take Dr. Mike Miller for a middle-aged rocker, roaming the halls of the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore. For years, Miller, a research cardiologist, has been studying the effects of happiness - or things that make people happy - on our hearts. He began his research with laughter, and found watching funny movies and laughing at them could actually open up blood vessels, allowing blood to circulate more freely. Miller thought, if laughter can do that, why not music? So, he tested the effects of music on the cardiovascular system. "Turns out music may be one of the best de-stressors - either by playing or even listening to music," said Miller. The setup was basically the same as with the laughter study: Using high-tech imaging, Miller measured blood vessel size as people listened to music. The results did not surprise Miller. "The inner lining of the blood vessel relaxed, opened up and produced chemicals that are protective to the heart," he said. But when participants listened to music they didn't particularly enjoy, Miller said, "the vessels actually began to close up

Songs soothe symptoms in heart disease patients

If you have heart problems, you might want to plug in that iPod or pop in a CD of mellow songs. Hospital patients with coronary heart disease reduced their heart rates, breathing rate and blood pressure just by listening to music, a Temple University review of 23 previous studies found. The report, published in the latest issue of The Cochrane Library, found that the soothing effects were greatest when these patients chose their own tunes. For example, patients' pulse rates fell by more beats per minute when they made the selections compared with those who listened to music selected by researchers. - USA Today

Joyful music helps the heart

"Joyful music helps your heart, researchers find. The study comes from Michael Miller, MD, director of preventive cardiology at the University of Maryland. Miller reported the findings at this week's annual meeting of the American Heart Association in New Orleans. Ten volunteers identified specific music that made them feel a sense of joy. While the music played, Miller and colleagues used an ultrasound device to measure how well each person's blood vessels responded to a sudden increase in blood flow (caused by release of a blood pressure cuff). When they heard joyful music, the volunteers' blood vessels dilated by 26% - a very healthy response. It's similar in magnitude to the response seen after aerobic exercise. Laughter also improved blood flow. After listening to a comedy tape, volunteers' blood vessels dilated by 19%. That's similar to the laughter effect seen in an earlier study, in which volunteers viewed excerpts from the comic movie Kingpin. But music has a dark side, too. Listening to music that made volunteers feel anxious narrowed blood vessels by 6%. 'These results were music to my ears because they signal another preventive strategy that we may incorporate in our daily lives to promote heart health,' Miller says in a news release. Country music made most of the volunteers feel joyful. Heavy metal music made most of them feel anxious. But Miller says what matters isn't the type of music, but an individual's emotional response to the music. Miller says that 10 different individuals might well have found different types of music joyful - and heart healthy. Funding for the study came from the American Heart Association, the Veterans Administration, and the National Institutes of health" - webMD

Music 'boosts exercise endurance'

"A study has confirmed what many gym users already knew - listening to music can boost your capacity for exercise. Dr Costas Karageorghis, from Brunel University, has worked out a formula to find the 'perfect' workout track. He tested 30 volunteers on a variety of specially-selected rock and pop music, and found their endurance rose by an average of 15%. He said this could help people 'prescribed' exercise for obesity or heart problems" - BBC