NIH Funds Sound Health Initiative

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently announced that it will award $20 million over 5 years to the Sound Health Initiative, which was created to explore the impact music has on various aspects of health. 

The Sound Health Initiative was started in 2017 as a joint project between the NIH, the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, and the National Symphony Orchestra. The four general aims of Sound Health Initiative are to

1. Expand current knowledge and understanding of how listening, performing, or creating music involves intricate circuitry in the brain that could be harnessed for health and wellness applications in daily life.
2. Explore ways to enhance the potential for music as therapy for neurological disorders.
3. Identify future opportunities for research.
4. Create public awareness about how the brain functions and interacts with music.

For more information on current projects check out the links below.

References

• Medical Research Initiatives: Sound Health
• Exploring the Universality of Human Song
• NIH Awards $20 Million Over Five Years to Bring Together Music Therapy Neuroscience
• Music and the Mind YouTube Video