Any music lover knows there are certain songs that can transport you to a different time or place and impact your mood at the mere mention of it. For senior music listeners, however, some sweet tunes can go a long way toward your overall health.

Whether you’re powering through your morning workout, managing your stress, or making a comeback from a recent health event, science is in your favor when it comes to listening to music.

Mental Health

Say you’re struggling with an illness, and it’s got you stressed out, anxious, and/or depressed. Several studies have proven that listening to music releases serotonin and dopamine — feel-good chemicals in your brain. This helps to relieve some of that pain, anxiety, and overall stress.

Several studies have proven that listening to music releases serotonin and dopamine – feel-good chemicals in your brain.

But how do you implement more music into your life? You can start by simply having it on in the background of your everyday activities, or setting aside 30 minutes a day to meditate while listening to music, and let your mind wander. It’s in this state of mind (also known as incubation) that you may do your best problem-solving for future events.

In short, listening to music helps you feel happier, therefore leaving you in better mental shape.

Physical Upkeep

Staying active can be tough without the proper motivation or mindset. But a study found that when people were tasked with walking on a treadmill until exhaustion, those who were listening to music were able to walk for a longer period of time than those who weren’t.

Even beyond exercise, scientists found that people who listen to soothing music for 30 minutes experience an uptick in levels of a disease-fighting antibody. This means that comforting tunes may improve your immune function.

Scientists found that people who listen to soothing music for 30 minutes experience an uptick in levels of a disease-fighting antibody.

There’s also the straightforward way that music can positively impact your physical health — dancing! Dancing not only increases seniors’ mobility and coordination, it releases endorphins, another feel-good chemical. So, knock out several health concerns and boogie!

Recovery

You may be trying to get your physical strength back, or working your brain up to 100 percent, but in any case, some tunes could make a world of difference.

When recovering from a stroke or another health event that can take a physical toll, becoming active, in however small of a way, helps in regaining physical strength as well as maintaining positive mental health. One way you can do this is by picking up an instrument.

One way you can improve your mental and physical strength is by picking up an instrument.

Learning an instrument releases a ton of happy chemicals in the brain, keeps you mentally active, and helps you work muscles you may not have considered otherwise. But the great thing is, you don’t have to take lessons or learn how to read music if you’re not able. You can simply play around and make your own music, learning along the way.

A good song can also help with recovering memory and adjusting your mood. If you find yourself in a fog or a funk, give yourself a break and take a beat to listen to songs that make you feel good.

Finding Your Playlist

We love YouTube and all its uses, and this is especially true when it comes to music. Here, you can easily search for and discover your favorite artists and songs, and create playlists for various activities like meditating, or cooking, or walking through your neighborhood.

On YouTube, you can easily search for and discover your favorite artists and songs, and create playlists for an assortment of activities.

The most important thing to keep in mind when making your playlists is to find music that makes you happy or content, and to create a space of relaxation or motivation within a few songs.

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Music can be used at any time or place to completely change your mental health and improve your physical health. All it takes is the time to listen.