Did You Know?

Your heartbeat changes and mimics the music you listen to.

Music form an essential part of our lives. Whether for good memories or bad ones most people recall that specific song playing in the background of the situation. 

Music is tied into human emotion and can make a person happy, sad, anxious or self-confident. Music is also connected to physiological responses within the body, including heart rate. 

The relationship between music and heart rate is complex and can be beneficial to health, especially for those who experience heart problems and chronic pain. 

A person's heart rate changes while listening to music, but whether the heart beats faster or slower depends on the tempo of the music.

In the November 2009 issue of "Harvard Health Letter," studies performed at Massachusetts General Hospital and in medical facilities in Hong Kong show that people who listened to music for 20 to 30 minutes each day had lower blood pressure and a slowed heart rate compared with those who did not listen to music. 

A University of Oxford study reported by Australia's ABC News in Science explains that music with a faster rhythm, such as rap, increases a person's heart rate, instead of providing a relaxing effect.