Benefits of Singing

Benefits of Singing

I remember, when I was a kid, my mother and father would sit on the piano bench together. My mother would play some of their favorite songs and they would sing together.? They would smile and laugh and have a great time. It was so natural for them and I and my two brothers would listen, attempt to join in, smile and laugh and feel a sense of home and safety.? I didn’t know at that time how powerful music is and how singing together can produce such positive benefits.

Singing is in all of us

Singing produces benefits and results that might surprise you. For thousands of years, in all cultures, in all parts of the world, people have been singing. Singing is in our genes and in human nature. The urge to sing - and to hear others sing - is in all of us.

Human beings have enjoyed and used singing in various ways for a very long time. Our ancient ancestors started to sing - to make musical noises with their voices - soon after developing vocal chords, probably even before humans could actually speak.

Across the globe, across all societies and religions and ethnic groups, singing has been a significant feature of human behavior throughout time.

According to a recent study, “Music is ubiquitous in all known human cultures. The general capacity for human beings to perceive, produce, and enjoy music even in the absence of formal music training suggests that music may be “hardwired” in our genetic makeup.”

Physical benefits of singing

Singing increases the amount of oxygen you take into the body as you take deep breaths. According to recent studies,? “The practice of singing involves strong and fast inhalations, followed by extended, regulated exhalations. This produces a feeling of alertness as more oxygen gets to the brain.” Also, as you sing, you articulate and use facial expressions, so you improve muscle tone in the face, throat, neck and jaw, thereby promoting a youthful appearance.

Mental benefits of singing

As well as the fact that singing makes you feel good physically, singing has great mental benefits too. The process of singing, especially in a group, is highly motivational. Singing helps to calm negative mental 'chatter' - the distracting unhelpful thoughts we can all have at times - because you are focused on the job of singing, and this stops us dwelling on life's issues and problems.

Singing is utterly absorbing and radically different from usual work-related tasks. Like physical exercise, singing requires a level of focus and bodily activity that shifts our minds away from our usual patterns of thinking, even away from quite pressurized and stressful attitudes.

According to a story about the conditions in a London hospital, recounted in a recent article from the BBC “Their surgical floor had been converted into a department for coronavirus patients and spirits were low. Nurse Lori Marie Key was asked if she would sing Amazing Grace for her colleagues during the morning briefing. There was something about the solidarity and togetherness of that moment that personifies a lot about the power of song. But it wasn’t just something abstract and ethereal happening, there are scientific reasons for why singing feels good.”

When we sing, large parts of our brain “light up” with activity, says Sarah Wilson, a clinical neuropsychologist and head of the School of Psychological Sciences at the University of Melbourne.

Additionally, singing beautiful lyrics help expand your imagination and appreciation of the world around us and connects us in a very real way to how others see and experience life.

Increased Positive Feelings

Singing is a joyful and uplifting experience. Research carried out at the Department of Psychology, McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, found that singing increases the body’s levels of immunoglobulin A, an antibody which is made by the immune system to fight bacteria, viruses, and toxins.?IgA?is found in high concentrations in the body's mucous membranes, particularly the respiratory passages and gastrointestinal tract, as well as in saliva and tears.

Furthermore, researchers involved in this study found that listening to music stimulates the body to release dopamine, which is the body’s own reward and pleasure neurochemical. Another benefit of being a singer is it increases levels of the hormone oxytocin leading to improved social integration and affiliation. Positive feelings can make a huge difference in the life of an older adult who is living alone or suffering from a chronic medical condition.

Singing can make a huge difference in all of our lives and it is also simply great fun.? That is exactly the intention of “Tune in Today” , my weekly program of music and conversation. It’s available every Monday? at 1:00pm eastern time.? Please join me on the ComForCare corporate Facebook page and let’s have some fun and enjoy the benefits of singing.