Research from around the
world continues to prove the beneficial effect of singing – especially in a
group. Some examples:
- “In previous studies experts claimed that joining a choir could improve symptoms of Parkinson’s, depression and lung disease.
- Swedish research has suggested that it not only increases oxygen levels in the blood but triggers the release of “happy” hormones such as Oxycontin, which is thought to help lower stress levels and blood pressure.
- A year long study on people with mental health problems, carried out by the Sidney De Haan Research Centre for Arts and Health, Canterbury, has also shown that some 60 per cent of participants had less mental distress when retested a year after joining, with some people no longer fulfilling diagnostic criteria for clinical depression”
An article I read recently
about continuing ongoing research, reported that singing in a choir even had
the edge over team sports partly because in a choir, members synchronise their
breathing. There is also some speculation
that singing in a group gives us something that we have lost as a society. Perhaps that sense of social interaction,
being part of a community?
No matter which way you
look at it – or listen – there’s just no denying that making song has magic
properties which benefits everyone.
