Music is a potent form of communication. It conveys emotion — oftentimes far more effectively than words alone. When you hear music, many areas of your brain light up, including your nucleus accumbens, a part of your brain that releases the feel-good chemical dopamine and is involved in forming expectations. 

The amygdala, which is involved in the processing of emotion, and the prefrontal cortex, which makes abstract decision-making possible, are also activated. Certain hormones are also released. Oxytocin, for example, a bonding hormone released during interactions with loved ones, is released when singing together.

Many evolutionary biologists believe music was fundamental in our ability to function as humans and hold together large communities of people, as music is capable of producing oxytocin, i.e., bonding and sharing emotions, on a massive scale. Over the past decade, researchers investigating treatments for dementia and Alzheimer’s have discovered the benefits of music as therapy. The 2014 documentary “Alive Inside” demonstrates the remarkable benefits music can have on patients with dementia.

Personalized Playlists Improve Behavior and Reduce Medication Use

To evaluate the effects of the kind of music therapy featured in “Alive Inside,” researchers implemented the “Music & Memory” program in 98 nursing homes, and compared the results with 98 nursing homes without the program.

Endpoints evaluated included the discontinuation of antipsychotic and/or anti-anxiety medication, reductions in disruptive behavior and improvement in mood. They found dementia patients who listened to music personalized to their tastes did in fact require less psychotropic medication to control their behavior. Over the course of six months:

• Over 20 percent of patients receiving music therapy were able to discontinue their antipsychotic medication, compared to an average of 17.6 percent prior to the implementation of the program. In nursing homes without the music program, discontinuation rates remained stable
• The proportion of residents with reduced dementia-related behavioral problems increased from 51 percent to 57 percent; behavior problems in the comparison group remained unchanged