Listening to half an hour of music each day may significantly lower your blood pressure, according to research recently reported at the American Society of Hypertension meeting in New Orleans.

According to Reuters, the study found that people with mild hypertension (high blood pressure) who listened to classical, Celtic or Indian (raga) music for just 30 minutes a day for one month had significant reductions in their blood pressure.

“Listening to music is soothing and has often been associated with controlling patient-reported pain or anxiety and acutely reducing blood pressure,” study investigator Dr. Pietro A. Modesti, of the University of Florence in Italy, noted in a written statement from the meeting. “But for the first time, today’s results clearly illustrate the impact daily music listening has on ambulatory blood pressure.”

Ambulatory blood pressure refers to readings taken repeatedly over the course of a day.
The study looked at 48 adults between the ages of 45 to 70 who were taking medication to control mild hypertension. Of these, 28 listened to 30 minutes of “rhythmically homogenous” classical, Celtic or raga music daily while practicing slow, controlled breathing exercises. The remaining 20 participants, serving as the control group, making no changes to their daily routine, Reuters said.

Blood pressure readings obtained one and four weeks later showed that systolic blood pressure - the top number in the blood pressure reading - dropped significantly in the music listeners. In contrast, the control group experienced only small, non-significant reductions in blood pressure.

“We are excited about the positive implications for both patients and physicians, who can now confidently explore music listening as a safe, effective, non-pharmacological treatment option or a complement to therapy,” Modesti said.