Medical Mysteries of Music

Another study says that listening to metal is good for your health

Stressed? Who isn’t these days? Maybe what you need is a little heavy metal.

A new study by the Vera Clinic shows that listening to metal can lower your blood pressure, bring down your heart rate, and reduce overall anxiety. (This would be a good time to point out that the Vera Clinic is based in Turkey and specializes in hair transplants and rhinoplasty. But whatever.)

The clinic had 1,540 volunteers between 18 and 65 engage in “non-verbal reasoning tests” that were designed to lower stress. They also listened to various flavours of Spotify playlists. Heart rate and blood pressure was monitored the whole time.

When all the data was crunched, metal was the second-most effective genre at dissipating anxiety. An amazing 89% saw their blood pressure drop while heart rates fell by 18%.

What was best? That would be 80s pop music, which induced a blood pressure drop in 96% of the subjects while heart rates dropped an average of 36%.

What is it about metal? The doctor who led the study says “In terms of heavy metal, I’d observe that angry music can help listeners process their feelings. And as a result lead to greater well-being.”

Read more at Metal Sucks.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 39965 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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