Health Matters
Whether it’s singing in a choir, playing the living room piano, joining in hymns at church, or just whistling along with the radio, a new poll finds that nearly all older adults say music brings them far more than just entertainment.
Three-quarters of people age 50 to 80 say music helps them relieve stress or relax and 65% say it helps their mental health or mood, according to the new results from the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging. Meanwhile, 60% say they get energised or motivated by music.
Those are just a few of the health-related benefits cited by older adults who answered questions about listening to and making music of all kinds.
Virtually all (98%) said they benefit in at least one health-related way from engaging with music.
In addition, 41% say music is very important to them, with another 48% saying it’s somewhat important.
“Music has the power to bring joy and meaning to life. It is woven into the very fabric of existence for all of humankind,” said Joel Howell, MD, PhD, a professor of internal medicine at the U-M Medical School who worked with the poll team.
Music also has tangible effects on a variety of health-related ailments, he adds.
“We know that music is associated with positive effects on measures from blood pressure to depression.”
The poll is based at the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation and supported by AARP and Michigan Medicine, the University of Michigan’s academic medical center.
The poll team asked a national sample of adults aged 50 to 80 about their experiences with and feelings toward listening to and making music.
Many older adults reported making music with other people at least occasionally, whether by singing or playing an instrument.
In all, 8% said they have sung in a choir or other organized group at least a few times in the past year.
About 8% of all older adults said they play an instrument with other people at least occasionally.
In all, 46% of older adults reported singing at least a few times a week, and 17% said they play a musical instrument at least a few times a year.
Most respondents reported listening to music, with 85% saying they listen to it at least a few times a week, 80% saying they’ve watched musical performances on television or the internet at least a few times in the past year, and 41% saying they had attended live musical performances in person at least a few times in the past year.
That latter percentage was higher among those with higher incomes and more education.
