MUSIC - THE NATURAL DRUG OF HAPPINESS
Whether
it's Mozart, Joni Mitchell, Adele or newcomers like Frank Ocean music
is powerful and has existed in all cultures throughout history. But why
do humans find music so addictive and pleasurable?
Dopamine |
At
its core, music is the combination of audio frequencies and intricate
patterns floating through the air and clashing together in our ear. Much
like our eyes process light, our ears process waves of sound and
trigger a state of excitement and sometimes pleasure in our brain.
Humans experience pleasure from many stimulants food, sex and drugs. But
because many of these stimulants are necessary for human survival the
body has created a system in which it rewards us for achieving them.
What's really happening is a release of a neurotransmitter in the brain
called dopamine. Dopamine is a chemical responsible for making us feel
good. When dopamine is released following a reward such as a delicious
meal or winning the lottery, the neurotransmitter causes a feeling of
pleasure and satisfaction. Drugs, such as cocaine, take advantage of
this pathway by increasing the amount of dopamine, or rather, preventing
its removal causing continual stimulation of our neurons, which creates
intense moments of pleasure.
Music is addictive |
Music
has the ability to create state of arousal causing pupils to dilate,
blood pressure to rise and the brain to fire in auditory, movement and
emotional regions. And even though music doesn't have a direct survival
benefit, this emotional reaction causes a release of the feel good
chemical, dopamine. Though the exact evolutionary reasoning is unclear,
the amazing fact remains, music chemically alters our body and makes us
feel great. And in the same way that a drug induced dopamine surge
leaves us craving more, music becomes addictive. The dopamine tells our
body it was rewarded and creates the desire to seek out more.
Even
though music enjoyment is entirely subjective and intertwined with
cultural and personal experience, the chemical effects remain constant
amongst the human race, a perfectly natural drug of happiness.
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