A small study on blood pressure published this month (September 2008) by Seattle University is generating a lot of attention. Research on the effects of music and relaxation should provide food for thought in a fresh and productive direction. Instead, the study is being widely misreported, focusing on trifling details with an attitude that condemns with weak praise.

In the study, 41 older people with high blood pressure listened to Mozart or a “guided relaxation” program for 12 minutes a day, three times a week for four months. No Mozart music was specified, but the relaxation CD included a background of ocean waves along with soothing voice and guided breathing exercises.

The average systolic blood pressure in the Mozart group was reduced by 7 points, while the average reduction in the guided relaxation group was 9 systolic points. Diastolic blood pressure was not affected as much, but medical experts tend to consider systolic blood pressure the most important health factor.

Mozart versus “New Age”?

Many of the reports chose to focus on the slightly larger reductions of the guided relaxation group, painting Mozart as the “loser” as in an absurd battle of the bands. This misses the point entirely. The research was not a competition to determine the “winning” relaxation style, as if 2 points among such a small sample had any meaning anyway.

In fact, the study has a number of shortcomings including:

  • A statistically insignificant number of participants (only 21 in the Mozart group and 20 in the guided relaxation group). The results of such a small group cannot be projected to millions of hypertensives.
     
  • The elderly are not a representative sample of hypertensives (the largest group of hypertensives are baby boomers and its prevalence among young people is increasing rapidly).
     
  • Why was participation limited to just 12 minutes a day, three times a week? Based on previous research, the modest results of this study were entirely predictable. A second recent study in Italy had much better results with participants listening to slow, relaxing music for half an hour a day.
     
  • What pieces of Mozart’s music were used? Mozart’s music is a huge body of work that covers a wide range of moods and tempos, often in the same composition. Plus, much of it was never meant to be relaxing. This is not a dumb point, as previous research has shown the obvious: fast-tempo music raises blood pressure, while slow-tempo music lowers it.

Therefore, it is difficult to assess this part of the study results without knowing the specific music used. What is more certain is that all or most of the music that meets the correct criteria is capable of having a pronounced effect on blood pressure.

Participants in the Italian study listened to Indian, Celtic, or Western classical raga music, and the conclusion was that any style of music that is slow and relaxing in nature can be effective in lowering blood pressure.

It’s all in the breath…

Finally, the limitations mentioned above pale in importance when compared to the main complaint: the guided relaxation group also participated in breathing exercises. This is one of the main factors contributing to their results, if not the main one, and yet it was reported almost as a separate thing. The study more accurately reflects the effects of relaxation music. with the breath compared to those of just listening to Mozart.

There is a wealth of research along with years of real life practice showing that what is now commonly known as slow breathing is capable of significantly lowering high blood pressure. Even more important, the effects of slow breathing are cumulative and long-lasting, unlike those of relaxation alone, which tend to be only temporary.

Double your pleasure: breathe with music

But if you really want to see results you have to combine the two: breathing and music. A biofeedback device called Resperate uses a synthesizer to generate musical tones that therapeutically guide the user’s breathing. They recommend using the device a minimum of 15 minutes a day, 3 or 4 times a week, although the results improve even with daily use.

There are numerous clinical trials documenting the efficacy of slow breathing. These are randomized, double-blind trials, the same standard used in drug testing, published in peer-reviewed medical journals.

In testing, the method has achieved spectacular results with the top 10% reductions averaging 36 systolic points and 20 diastolic points. Another impressive result is an 82% response rate in a group of “resistant hypertensives”, people who did not respond to other forms of treatment.

Maximum relaxation: slow breathing with music

A newer method called “slow breathing to music” is closer in spirit to the methods attempted by the Seattle study. This method uses the same clinically proven breathing methods that the Resperate uses, but in a way that is almost the reverse: it uses a synthesized guided breathing track combined with real music.

Those who use slow breathing with music say they find real music more relaxing and enjoyable, increasing usage and, they say, their results. What is not in doubt is the number of people who get remarkable results with this method. Slow Breathing with Music comes in two styles: a modern form of ambient music called ambient and classical (including some carefully chosen Mozart). Daily use of 15 minutes is recommended.

Both slow breathing methods, backed by abundant research combined with many thousands of successful users, demonstrate the most effective way of using music to lower blood pressure: namely, as a relaxing medium in which to apply slow breathing.

Criteria and attitudes…

The real significance of the Seattle study, within its limitations, is that both results are equally encouraging and deserve more attention. Especially when considered in conjunction with many other remedies, the study points the way toward a promising, totally safe, and natural alternative for lowering blood pressure.

Unfortunately, the way the study was reported contributes to exactly the opposite effect. Along with the usual platitudes that recognize the potential, albeit “minor,” role of method in the fight against hypertension, most reports agree that “no one should think that relaxation or listening to classical music can replace antihypertensives.” .

actually this is the bottom line: replace potentially dangerous blood pressure medications with safe, natural methods. And it’s not a futile goal. In his article “What Your Doctor Can’t Tell You About Blood Pressure” for Virginia Hopkins Health Watch, Dr. John Lee writes:

“The most important thing I want to tell you about high blood pressure is that it can almost always be lowered with lifestyle changes… But the conventional medical wisdom is that patients won’t make lifestyle changes, so that the automatic response to high blood pressure is to prescribe a medication that will lower it.I believe, and there is a lot of research to back me up, that these medications are just as likely to kill you as high blood pressure, especially if you don’t. I really need them.”

Some late night music?

It seems that the attitude that leads doctors to prescribe unnecessary antihypertensive drugs is the same one that always concludes studies of natural alternatives with “but it will never replace drugs.” In fact, slow breathing, with and without music, has helped thousands of people avoid, reduce, or even eliminate blood pressure medications. And a bit of Mozart sure makes the medicine swallow easier!