Music Could Reduce Pain, But Only If You Like It

Scientists have long studied the power of sound in general and the music in particular for alleviate the pain. Benefits have been observed even in babies, whose response to the pain caused by the heel test can be greatly diminished by a Mozart lullaby. But, according to a new study, at least as far as adults are concerned, the effects of this intervention would basically depend on whether they like to listen to Mozart.

Its authors, of the University of Montreal, wanted to delve even deeper into what is known about the relationship between music and pain. Specifically, they sought to know if any music is valid or if, on the contrary, each person’s preferences are important. And the truth is that yes.

With a simple experiment, they verified that a thermal painful signal, which mimics the effect of a hot cup of tea on the forearm, was perceived as much milder when participants listened to their favorite performers. In addition, the emotions that the melodies generated also had a lot to do with reducing pain. It is one more step to introduce music as one of the many analgesic tools we have.

It is clear that we will not be able to remove a wisdom tooth without anesthesia while we listen to Extremoduro, but surely, if we did, the situation would be less traumatic and we would perceive a little less pain. At least that’s what this study points out.

Why can music reduce pain?

The mechanisms by which music can reduce pain are not entirely clear. However, there are hypotheses, related to the release of endorphins. These are substances, produced in the brain, that are generally associated with happiness and positive moods, but have more effects.

For example, They are capable of interfering with the sending of pain signals through the nerve fibers. That is why it is considered that situations in which endorphins are released, such as sex or exercise, can help reduce pain.

Practically any pleasant situation It is associated with the release of endorphins. The music could not be less, but it is logical to think that a song that we like is better. If you hate reggaeton, it will hardly help you with the pain. But if you enjoy it, maybe it does have positive effects.

A very promising experiment

To check to what extent it influences choice of music To reduce pain, the authors of this study asked all participants about their favorite artists.

Next, the same painful stimulus and they were made to listen 7 minutes of silence or music. In the case of music, this could be any song, which would serve as a control, or a song by the chosen artist.

In this way, it was seen that the subjective perception of pain was significantly lower with its Favourite artistsfollowed by control music and, finally, by silence, in which no effects were perceived.

The analgesic role of music is often associated with its ability to relax. Therefore, some relaxing songs were chosen among the control themes. However, this made no difference.

The importance of emotions

Not only were participants asked about their perception of pain after listening to music. They were also surveyed about the emotions generated by it. Thus, it was seen that the songs considered as moving They were the ones that reduced pain the most.

It should be noted that this study has some limitations. For example, it has been studied with very short musical recordings. It would be necessary to check whether listening to relaxing music for a longer period of time could overcome the effects of the participants’ favorite artists.

It is also important to note that it has been carried out only with a thermal painful stimulus. For this reason, the authors themselves report in a statement that it would be interesting to repeat the study with mechanical painsuch as that caused by a blow.

Either way, this makes a lot of sense. Music releases endorphins, but it also distracts us from pain. For anyone, a song by their favorite musician or group will be much more pleasant and distracting. That would be the perfect pain reliever. Or at least one of the many that we can find beyond our medicine cabinets.