Singing against pathogens

How you can support your immune system with music

Especially during the cold season, we should sing a song more often.(Bild: luismolinerz/stock.adobe.com)

As things stand at the moment, the cold season is unlikely to be over for some time yet. When we are surrounded by coughing or sniffling people everywhere, we are well advised to keep our immune system as fit as possible. Why singing is the best way to arm yourself against viruses.

Sufficient exercise, a healthy diet, little alcohol, no smoking and avoiding stress are well-known factors that support our immune system in its daily work. But did you know that music also has a positive effect on our immune system? Rhythmic sounds influence numerous processes in the body. They change the heartbeat, the frequency of our breathing, our blood pressure and hormone balance, affect our mood, the sensation of pain and also our immune system.

For example, relaxing sounds of nature or classical music can improve the quality of sleep and reduce the release of stress hormones such as cortisol. Cheerful and energetic music and the sounds of singing bowls, on the other hand, stimulate the production of happiness hormones such as serotonin and dopamine. All of this has a positive effect on the functioning of the immune system.

However, studies show that it also makes a clear difference whether we only passively listen to music, actively play an instrument or even sing ourselves. At the Institute for Music Education at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main (Germany), researchers examined the saliva samples of choir members.

They found that the number of the protein immunoglobulin A increased significantly after singing. This antibody protein plays a decisive role in the defense against pathogens. Interestingly, however, this effect did not occur when simply listening to music, which underlines the particular importance of active singing.

Singing improves the body's own defenses.(Bild: Bikej Barakus/stock.adobe.com)

British scientists from Imperial College in London came to the same conclusion. The researchers found that after around 60 minutes of singing, the biological markers for stress and the body's immune defenses change significantly. According to the study, people with a severely weakened immune system, such as cancer patients, particularly benefited from the stress-reducing and immune-boosting effect. So, whether you're in the shower or driving, whether you hit all the right notes or not - for the sake of your immune system, don't feel inhibited and sing at the top of your voice more often.