A new study in psychological science shows that if you listen to music before going to bed, the "earworm" may enter people's dreams and affect the quality of sleep. "Ear worm" is an unconscious (involuntary) musical imagination. When a song or melody is played and listened to repeatedly, the song (or melody) will be repeated in my mind, lingering, and even humming unconsciously. It is like being "brainwashed", which is the "ear bug effect".
Studies have found that listening to music before going to bed does not help sleep
But the "ear worm effect" usually occurs when the brain is awake. Why does it affect the quality of sleep?
"Even when no one plays music, the brain will continue to process music, including during sleep." Dr. Michael Scullin, a sleep scientist at Baylor University in the United States, explained, "listening to music can really make people feel happy and relaxed, but the more you listen to music, the more likely it is to have an 'ear bug effect', and then sleep may be affected."
Dr. Michael Scullin's team investigated whether listening to music would affect sleep and deeply understood the mechanism of "ear worm effect".
The medical information network learned that the research survey included 209 participants, including 199 participants. They completed a series of questionnaires on sleep quality, listening to music habits and the frequency of "ear worm effect", including the frequency of "ear worm effect" when they try to sleep, wake up in the middle of the night and wake up in the morning.
Another 50 participants were taken to the sleep neuroscience and Cognition Laboratory of Baylor University. In the laboratory, the research team tried to determine how the "ear worm effect" affects sleep quality by inducing the occurrence of the "ear worm effect" and recording the participants' brain waves, heart rate, breathing, etc. during sleep. Before going to bed, the researchers played three popular songs, namely "shake it off", "call me may" and "don't stop believin". Participants were randomly assigned to listen to the original version or pure music (Instrumental) accompaniment version of these songs, and feedback whether and when they experienced the "ear worm effect". At the same time, the researchers analyzed whether participants' sleep quality at night was affected.
The results showed that people with "ear worm effect" were more difficult to sleep, more likely to wake up at night, and longer in the mild sleep stage. Many people who often listen to music will have a continuous "ear worm effect" and a decline in sleep quality, which is contrary to the view that music is a "therapy" conducive to sleep.
"Almost everyone thinks that listening to music can improve their sleep quality, but our study found that people who listen to music more have worse sleep quality. What is more surprising is that instrumental music has a greater impact on sleep quality, and the 'ear bug effect' caused by instrumental music is twice that of other music types," Dr. Michael Scullin said
In order to avoid the adverse effects of listening to music on sleep quality, Dr. Michael Scullin suggests:
1. Listen to music moderately. Never listen to music before going to bed.
2. If you are troubled by the "ear bug effect", you can help distract the brain from the "ear bug" by completely focusing on one other thing.
3. Before going to bed, take 5 to 10 minutes to write down a to-do list to help empty the brain and help sleep. Don't do activities that require high mental and physical strength or other things that will interfere with sleep.
