Music has been proven to soothe our mind, body and soul. While a recent study discovered the benefits of music among palliative care patients, a new research has found that singing can also improve memory work among dementia patients.
Medical Daily reports that elderly patients with mild to moderate dementia could have better memory and cognitive performance after receiving a 10-week music coaching intervention.
A study conducted by researchers from University of Helsinki in Finland looked at the effects of musical coaching to 89 patients with different levels of dementia when they joined the 10-week intervention with their caretakers.
According to the press release, the coaching included regular singing lessons and listening to familiar songs. The researchers also considered other factors such as age, dementia severity, care situation, and previous musical experience to gauge the impact of musical intervention.
Results show that regardless of the participants' musical inclination, singing was beneficial to their memory work especially among those with mild dementia and below 80 years old. Further, singing and music listening also relieved depression for patients with mild Alzheimer's-type dementia.
Listening to music improved general cognition and memory work for those with moderate dementia as well.
Researchers advise that patients should engage in musical activities during the early stages of dementia -- when the cognitive disorders are still mild. Lead researcher Dr. Teppo Sarkamo told Medical Daily in an email that patients should be encouraged to sing regularly or even join a community choir.
Teppo added that nursing homes should also conduct more musical activities to improve the condition of patients with early dementia.
"In the later stages of dementia when the cognitive deficits are more severe, music listening could be a more easily applicable way," Sarkamo continued.
The effects of music for patients with dementia were also shown in the 2014 Sundance documentary "Alive Inside: A Story of Music and Memory."