Story by Maggie Penman
Regularly listening to music is linked to a lower risk of developing dementia, according to a new study.
In the study, published in October, researchers looked at data spanning a decade and involving more than 10,000 relatively healthy people, aged 70 and older, in Australia. People who listened to music most days slashed their risk of developing dementia by 39 percent compared with those who did not regularly listen to music, the study found.
The ASPREE Longitudinal Study of Older Persons followed participants to investigate what factors are associated with the risks of developing various diseases — and how much lifestyle changes could make a difference.
“Music was one of the areas we were interested in,” said Joanne Ryan, head of the Biological Neuropsychiatry and Dementia research unit in the School of Public Health at Monash University and the senior researcher on the new study.
Researchers collected data annually from participants and their medical providers, and cognitive function assessments were conducted by trained staff.
They found that of the 10,893 participants in the study, the 7,030 who said they listen to music most days had the biggest drop in dementia risk compared with people who were not as frequent music listeners. The study did not specify what kind of music.