Relaxing music has been reported to be effective in reducing mental and physical stress in care facilities and homes.

This time, we will explain why incorporating music into nursing care settings can be expected to have a relaxing effect on the mind and body.

Is caregiving stressful for both parties?

Care recipients who have difficulty expressing themselves due to dementia or higher brain dysfunction may find it difficult to express their emotions and may be prone to stress. At the same time, caregivers may also be prone to stress when dealing with the complaints and dissatisfaction of their care recipients.

As one way to combat stress, nursery rhymes, finger games, and folk songs are used in elderly care facilities and are known as "active music therapy."

Listening to music is called "passive music therapy," but even if it's not called music therapy, it's said that simply playing background music quietly can have a certain effect.

1. Alpha wave-inducing music can help you relax!

Listening to the sound of waves on a quiet beach, birdsong in the woods, or the murmuring of a stream is soothing to the body and mind. These natural sounds have a "1/f fluctuation."

Music with "1/f fluctuation" is said to have a relaxing effect on people because it is not biased towards one frequency, but rather a harmony of regular and irregular elements.

It has been found that when people are relaxed, the brain waves of brain waves called alpha waves increase. Sounds containing "1/f fluctuations" induce these alpha waves.

Relaxing music has "1/f fluctuation"

2. Music affects the entire brain and body

When the brain is relaxed and alpha waves are being emitted, various changes occur.

Hormones such as beta-endorphin, known as the pleasure hormone, dopamine, which motivates, serotonin, also known as the happiness hormone, and PEA, which promotes empathy and is also known as the love hormone, are secreted.

These hormones not only affect human mood, but are also said to have pain-relieving and immune-boosting properties.

Music stimulates the entire brain

For example, different parts of the human brain are activated when looking at a picture, reading a book, etc. However, it has been found that when listening to music, the entire brain is activated and blood flow increases.

Therefore, it is said that stimulation through music can have a particularly positive effect on care recipients who have damaged brain function, such as those with dementia.

3. Reducing the mental and physical stress of caregivers

Relaxing music can also be very helpful in reducing stress for caregivers.

Stress in the caregiving field can easily lead to a vicious cycle where you are physically tired but too emotionally aroused to sleep, or you end up reversing your day and night schedule to care for someone, resulting in sleep deprivation, which in turn leaves you feeling irritable and unable to recover from the physical and mental fatigue.

When you can't get rid of physical fatigue or feel unwell

Hormones secreted in the brain where alpha waves are dominant favor the activity of the parasympathetic nervous system, thereby correcting imbalances in the function of the autonomic nervous system.

If stress increases and you start to feel unwell, you should consult a medical institution as soon as possible, but relaxing music can also help balance the autonomic nervous system, so it is a good idea to use it effectively.

Recommended music for use in nursing care settings

Relaxing music that allows you to feel the seasons and nature in care facilities

In nursing homes with many residents, using relaxing music that includes "1/f fluctuations" may be an option. Playing music that matches the weather and season of the day may help residents feel the change of seasons and nature even while inside the facility.

For home care, select according to your preferences and lifestyle

In home care, you can play the care recipient's favorite music, which may also be a conversation starter for the family providing the care.

Home care can be a burden for the caregiver, so for the caregiver's sake, it is recommended to use different music for different situations in daily life, such as relaxing music to help them sleep.

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