Music combined with auditory beat stimulation may reduce anxiety for
some
Combined treatments appear to help people with moderate trait anxiety
better than music alone

Date:
March 9, 2022
Source:
PLOS
Summary:
Treatments integrating music and auditory beat stimulation are
effective in reducing state anxiety in some patients, according
to a new study.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Treatments integrating music and auditory beat stimulation are effective
in reducing state anxiety in some patients, according to a new study
published this week in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Adiel Mallik
and Frank Russo of the Ryerson University, Canada.


========================================================================== Anxiety has been steadily increasing, particularly in the adolescent and
young adult populations, over recent decades. Studies have previously
shown that listening to music can reduce anxiety, perhaps even more
effectively than some anti-anxiety medications. However, quantitative
data on the effects of personalized music on anxiety has been lacking.

In the new study, the researchers randomized 163 patients taking
anti-anxiety medications to participate in an at-home treatment session involving music, auditory beat stimulation, both, or pink noise --
background sounds similar to white noise. The music was selected for each patient using LUCID's artificial intelligence which curates music based
on the patient's emotional state and music preferences. Auditory beat stimulation involves combinations of tones, played in one or both ears, designed to trigger changes to brain activity. In all groups, patients
were asked to download a customized application on their smart phone
for the treatment, close their eyes, and listen to a 24-minute session.

Among people with moderate anxiety before the treatment session, greater reductions in somatic anxiety -- the physical symptoms of anxiety
-- were seen in people who listened to both music and ABS (p=0.04,
effect size=0.83), or those who listened to music alone (p=0.05, effect size=0.52), compared to those who listened to pink noise. The greatest reductions in cognitive state anxiety -- the aspect of anxiety related
to thoughts and feelings -- were also seen in moderate trait anxiety participants who listened to both music and ABS. Among people with high
trait anxiety before the session, the music-alone group had significantly higher reductions in anxiety compared to the ABS-alone group (p=0.04,
effect size=0.72).

The authors conclude that sound-based treatments can be effective
in reducing state anxiety and potentially offer a simple and easily distributable method of treating anxiety in a segment of the population.

Drs. Russo and Malik add: "With the pandemic and remote work, there has
been a remarkable uptick in the use of digital health tools to support
mental health.

The results of this clinical trial indicate great promise for the
use of digital health tools, such as LUCID's digital music therapy,
in the management of anxiety and other mental health conditions."
"The findings from this research are exciting as they indicate that personalized music shows great promise in effectively reducing anxiety in specific segments of the population that suffer from anxiety. Hopefully,
with additional research, we can help build a solid evidence base which
further supports the use of personalized music as an additional tool in
the clinician's toolbox that can be used to help reduce anxiety in the
patient population."

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by PLOS. Note: Content may be edited
for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Adiel Mallik, Frank A. Russo. The effects of music & auditory beat
stimulation on anxiety: A randomized clinical trial. PLOS ONE,
2022; 17 (3): e0259312 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0259312 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220309140921.htm

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