• Home
  • Advertise With Us
  • Login

KC Our Health Matters

Black Men Speak: Health, Strength and Hope
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Awards & Events
    • Advertise With Us
  • Our Departments
    • Community
    • Cover Story
    • Food & Fitness
    • Online Articles
    • Health
    • Publisher’s Greeting
    • Videos
  • Digital Magazine
    • Digital Magazine
    • Caregivers Resource Guide
  • Subscription
  • Vaccination Update
    • COVID-19
  • Contact Us
You are at :Home»Food & Fitness»Music Truly is the Soundtrack of Our Lives
Music truly is the soundtrack of our lives

Music Truly is the Soundtrack of Our Lives

Food & Fitness

Melodies and rhythm can also help dementia patients.
By Jeanene Dunn, OHM Staff

Dementia is complicated because we understand that the disease robs a person of their memories over time. While that is certainly the case, it can be confusing to grasp how music can help someone who can’t remember anything at all, or even talk, in some cases.

If you have spent time in the company of someone who suffers from dementia, they tend to reside mentally in the past. If they can speak, they will talk of events long past or children who are now adults.

When we think of this behavior, it makes sense that a song from the past would evoke a response in long-buried memories. Researchers – some who happen to be musicians themselves — are actively studying the connection between music and dementia. One such person is Dr. Concetta M. Tomaino, D.A., MT-BC, LCAT, executive director and co-founder of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function, in Mount Vernon, NY.

She originally started working with dementia patients in care facilities and discovered that by playing a patient’s favorite song, she could get them to respond to her. Sometimes they would smile, nod their heads or tap their feet. In an interview on caring.com, Dr. Tomaino says, “I learned that music helped to keep them engaged and attentive, and helped to bring out parts of their personality.”

As she discovered the positive influence of music on dementia patients, Dr. Tomaino expanded her research to work with people affected by strokes or other neurological diseases and disorders.

Other programs like Music and Memory® work with caregivers and care facilities to program and provide personalized playlists on iPods® that feature music from the patient’s “era.” Depending on the era, that playlist could include big band music, show tunes, old R&B and soul songs, rock, metal or even hip-hop.
As the boomer generation ages, that playlist could feature music from Carole King and Elton John, to Tupac and Biggie.

While music is certainly not a cure for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, it is a powerful weapon in the arsenal of treatment that doesn’t involve taking a pill.

Sources: Institute for Music and Neurological Function, www.imnf.org Music and Memory, www.musicandmemory.org

Click here to view a performance from The Unforgettables Chorus, a musical group of dementia and Alzheimer’s patients and their family caregivers.

2018-09-12
kcourhealthmatters
linkedin Facebook Instagram Twitter Pinterest Stumble More
Previous Article :

Book Lovers Goldmine

Next Article :

Dementia Struck My Dad at a Young Age

Related Articles

Oven Roasted Cauliflower Recipe

Oven Roasted Cauliflower Recipe

kcourhealthmatters 20 Apr 2017
The Martinez Family Focuses on Health

The Martinez Family Focuses on Health

kcourhealthmatters 03 Jul 2017
You’ve Heard of Pilates, But Is it Right for You?

You’ve Heard of Pilates, But Is it Right for You?

kcourhealthmatters 05 Jul 2017

Vaccine Updates

Sheffield Place

Mother’s Refuge

Hope Haven of Cass County

Benilde Hall

Popular Articles

Who Cares for the Caregiver?
Health

Who Cares for the Caregiver?

kcourhealthmatters 10 Nov 2017
health matters
Cover Story

The Importance of Regular Eye Exams

kcourhealthmatters 12 Sep 2017
Achieving Goals
Health

Jobs, Education, and Training Support Healthier Lives

kcourhealthmatters 20 Apr 2017
Are Pilates Right for you
Food & Fitness

You’ve Heard of Pilates, But Is it Right for You?

kcourhealthmatters 05 Jul 2017
Five Ways to Make Getting Healthy a Family Affair
Health

Five Ways to Make Getting Healthy a Family Affair

kcourhealthmatters 05 Jul 2017
  • Community
  • Food & Fitness
  • Health
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap

KC Our Health Matters
Since Our Health Matters™ launched in 2005, we have provided readers with insight into how to live healthier lives.

Recent Posts

  • Black Men Speak: Health, Strength and Hope

    Black Men Speak: Health, Strength and Hope

    18 Nov 2022
  • GET THE FACTS ABOUT LONG-TERM & SHORT-TERM SKILLED CARE

    GET THE FACTS ABOUT LONG-TERM & SHORT-TERM SKILLED CARE

    11 Oct 2022
  • Aging Changes Our Bones

    Aging Changes Our Bones

    11 Oct 2022

Subscribe Now

    Copyright 2021, All Rights Reserved - KC Our Health Matters