The benefits of playing a musical instrument, especially for brain development, have been studied and touted for years. From building brain power in young children to boosting memory in aging adults, music’s benefits span the generations.
What is so unique is that music engages the entire brain, activating and synchronizing the various regions and strengthening the neural pathways between them. The auditory cortex, responsible for deciphering sounds, the motor cortex that controls body movement, the prefrontal cortex that presides over cognition and emotion, and the hippocampus, the memory bank, are all awakened and join forces in a full-brain workout when playing a musical instrument.
Music has additional benefits in modern society dominated by digital devices and artificial intelligence. This is no longer the world of Mozart, who walked the cobblestone streets of Salzburg, Austria, in the 1700s and composed great masterpieces by candlelight. The world made a sharp turn, changing forever, when the tech boom burst on the scenes. The pivotal year was 2007 when the iPhone was first introduced, making recently developed Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube mobile and global. Netflix streaming was launched and IMB was developing the super-computer, Watson, ushering in an era of Artificial Intelligence.
While the advent of these new technologies has been advantageous in many ways, particularly with information sharing, adverse side effects on mental and physical health are surfacing. People, young and old, are tethered to their digital devices and living their lives through screens, disengaged from the real world. The resulting negative impacts of excessive screen time on health are many and music may be the perfect antidote!
The average screen time for a child in the United States ranges from 4 to 9 hours per day. This takes into account computers, phones, tablets, and television. Long term sensory overload from screens alters the chemistry, neural synapses, mass, and general function of the brain, reducing the ability to focus and retain information. Additionally, spending a large percentage of time in front of a screen doesn’t allow a child enough time to interact with others on a personal level, or with the environment, both of which are essential for social growth and development.
One alarming side effect is anxiety and depression. Children who spend 7 hours a day staring into a screen are twice as likely to suffer from mental health issues. Their minds don’t have enough quiet time or time to think and reflect due to the prolonged, constant overstimulation.
Adding to the anxiety is social media, which has become a vehicle for cyber bullying. Through social media children harass and ridicule others. This has taken bullying to a higher, more dangerous level. A quick text or post sent through Instagram, Snapchat or any other platform instantly spreads the attack far beyond the school playground, the classroom, or those close enough to witness it. The reach is staggering.
Perhaps most startling is that studies using brain scans revealed excessive screen time actually shrinks the gray matter, the cognitive part of the brain, while simultaneously deforming the white matter, which functions as a neural pathway. Brain MRI studies also show a premature thinning of the cerebral cortex in children as young as 9 years old. This is essentially brain atrophy, which is responsible for decreased cognition and critical thinking, and for the lack of impulse and behavioral control.
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