Music--the Anti-aging Supplement.
I'm Bob Karson with the discovery files -- new advances in science and engineering from the National Science Foundation.
A Northwestern University study shows that musical training could have beneficial effects in your later years. Groups of musicians and non-musicians, ages 45 thru 65 were tested. The team found those with lifelong musical training were better at recalling what they heard and could more easily discern speech in a noisy environment.
According to the researchers, the musicians train themselves to be able to remember complicated sound sequences, and to extract meaningful sounds from a complex soundscape--hearing their own instrument in a symphony and working with harmonies and rhythms.
As we age, our memory declines. At the same time, being able to hear a single voice in a crowded room often becomes next to impossible. The team believes a lifetime of musical training 'fine-tunes' the nervous system, sharpening our abilities to take in sound, hold it in memory, and process it. All of the musicians tested have been playing since age 9 at the latest.
The study shows that had you kept up with those lessons, your golden years would have provided you with a better sense of hearing. So kids, tell your parents you want to join a band so you'll have better hearing when you get older. Yeah--that should go over.
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