benefits of singing

Science documents the benefits.
Looking across the world, the human species is a singing animal. It´s an odd culture - or sub-culture - that doesn´t sing . And from the perspective of those that do, it must seem quaint to see western medical science seriously studying how and why singing promotes health. However, if we need science to prove the worth and health benefits of singing, here are some examples:

1. Researchers at the University of Manchester have discovered that the sacculus, a little organ in the inner ear, responds to frequencies commonly found in music, & is connected to the part of the brain responsible for registering pleasure. This sacculus is ONLY responsive to low frequency, high intensity sounds, which include singing, & it responds within a few seconds of hearing that kind of sound. So you get immediate pleasure when you sing , regardless of what it sounds like to anyone else. Now if there are no criticisms or put downs from anyone else to cause you pain, you´ll find the experience enjoyable and get release of good old pleasure-giving endorphins as well. Singing provides catharsis across the full emotional spectrum. It can give a directly-experienced, felt-sense of happiness. It´s a mood lifter & anti depressant with no side effects. And it´s not news to health professionals that mental & physical health are intimately linked.

2. So what are the physical benefits? Professor Graham Welch who is Director of Educational Research at the University of Surrey in Roehampton UK has spent 30 years studying aspects of singing. He says people who sing are healthier than people who don´t. Singing gives the lungs a workout, tones up abdominal & intercostal muscle and the diaphragm, and stimulates circulation. It makes us breathe more deeply than even many forms of strenuous exercise, so we take in more oxygen, improve aerobic capacity and experience a release of muscle tension as well.

3. Community health benefits are well documented too. Researcher Robert Putnam did a study of Italian regions where he discovered a positive correlation `between the vigour of voluntary organisations, particularly choral societies and choirs, and the level of civic engagement´. In other words, the more people sang in groups, the higher the level of involvement in the tasks that a healthy community needs to do to care for itself. Presumably ANY vibrant and pleasurable voluntary activity will strengthen the `level of civic engagement´ and Italians may be more inclined to sing than your average person, but it does suggest one accessible, inexpensive option for re-developing the ´social capital´ that we used to take for granted as common decency and good citizenship. http://users.netconnect.com.au/~fwmusic/articlepg2.html    (top)