Music is medicine or so the saying goes. The idea that sound holds healing powers dates back tens of thousands of years, and today, sound therapy is becoming an increasingly popular tool for people seeking alternative ways to be healthy.
Operating under the idea that sound frequencies can have mental and physical impact, music therapy has often been delivered through sound baths, using instruments such as gongs, bowls and forks. This ancient belief that music can have benefits for our health is now being proven as it crosses paths with modern science.
Studies have shown that listening to music can help improve mood and sleep, lower stress and inflammation, change our perception of pain, and even have benefits for the heart and brain, with one study revealing how music can help lower blood pressure.
More intriguingly, recent research from Kyoto University revealed that sound directly impacts cells – altering behaviour linked to stress responses and fat cell development. The study identified hundreds of genes affected by sound that influence processes like blood vessel growth.
The crucial element? Sound pressure. When pressure from sound waves hits cells, it creates mechanical stimulation. Some genes are mechanosensitive – meaning they respond to external stimuli like pressure changes – potentially allowing sound to switch genes on and off. It’s a breakthrough discovery for therapeutic applications.
It is this pressure, as science is now showing, that enables us to physically feel loud sounds.
If you are a lover of bass music, for example, you may hold a special place in your heart for music that you can physically feel in your body – vibrating your bones, swaying you with rhythm and pushing you to the floor with the weight of the sound.
John Stuart Reid believes this pressure holds secrets for our health. His new research suggests the kind of pressure found in deep bass frequencies could help save lives.
Cymatics in healthcare
Reid is a specialist in cymatics – the study of visible sound.
Picture sand on a metal board. When you play a frequency to the board, sound wave pressure forms visible patterns in the sand. The grains arrange themselves into the shape of the sound’s pressure wave, creating what are known as Faraday waves.
Reid has spent over 25 years studying the biological effects of sound on human beings, specifically in relation to applying sound as a tool in medicine to treat or help disease and illness, finding practical applications for cymatics in healthcare.
I first spoke to Reid in 2019 to discuss a significant milestone in his work: distinguishing between the sounds of cancer cells and healthy cells.
As Reid explains, cells in the body vibrate and as they vibrate, they make a sound, indistinguishable to the human ear. Healthy cells and cancer cells vibrate differently, making different sounds.
To distinguish their sounds, Reid used his invention – the CymaScope – a device that uses a laser to pick up the vibrations from the cells, which then renders the vibrations visible as an image in water.
Reid found that the healthy cells would make markedly different patterns to the cancer cells.
Professor Ji using the CymaScopeThis technique is now being applied in cancer surgery, where the images are transferred to glasses worn by surgeons, giving them precise guidance on which cells are healthy and which are not.
Since implementing this innovative technique in cancer surgery, Reid is now finding further ways to use sound as a beneficial tool for healthcare, conducting new research with sound and blood.
The secrets of sound pressure
Typically, when we see images of sound waves in science books we see long, wavy lines; however, Reid argues that we should begin to depict the true nature of a sound wave, which is more like a pressure bubble.
“Unfortunately, we’re stuck with the term ‘sound wave’. It’ll never be eradicated – it’s just part of science now,” says Reid.
“Everyone talks about sound waves, but there is a problem with that because it gives a false impression. Some scientists, unfortunately, don’t even recognise that sound is literally not a wave – or that light isn’t a wave either. It’s actually quite a big issue.”
Reid’s breakthrough came in 2018 when Professor Sung Chul Ji of Rutgers University visited him. Ji, a biology major, wanted to design a protocol for experiments on music’s effects on human blood using test tubes.
“We worked for several days on the design, and all of the experiments proved extremely successful,” says Reid.
“We observed significant increases in the viability of red blood cells with all forms of music used in the trials.
“However, one of the most intriguing – and counterintuitive – findings was that the music producing the least improvement in red blood cell viability was classical music. That surprised both of us. We had expected classical music, because of its beauty and sophistication, to yield the strongest effect. But it turns out that musical beauty is not the main factor influencing blood in this context.
“So, the question became: what is the driving force behind music’s effect on blood?
“This realisation, that classical music delivered the weakest return, provided the clue. Despite being aesthetically pleasing, classical music tends to lack a strong bass register. It is mostly midrange and higher frequencies.
“Yes, there are exceptions – some pieces do feature a powerful low end, such as works with pipe organs or something like Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture – but generally, the bass is limited.”
Reid and Ji hypothesised that it is the low frequencies found in popular music – like pounding bass – that blood responds to.
To test that idea, the pair turned to the CymaScope.
“We took samples of whole human blood and placed them in the cuvette of the CymaScope. Then we introduced a low-frequency tone – specifically, 44 Hz. Immediately, a cymatic pattern formed on the surface of the blood.
“The very first one was a six-fold, hexagonal pattern. Now, that in itself wasn’t surprising. Blood is mostly water, and we know that when sound is applied to water, cymatic patterns form on the surface and sub-surface. So we fully expected a pattern to appear – and indeed it did.
“What we didn’t expect, however, was that once we stopped the sound, the pattern didn’t disappear.
“Normally, with Cymatics, the pattern vanishes as soon as the sound is removed. As we’ve already discussed, the basic principle is that when sound is present and a membrane is present, a cymatic pattern appears.
“Water molecules, in their natural state, move around randomly – this is known as Brownian motion. But as soon as sound is introduced, they instantly organise into coherent, ordered structures. It’s one of nature’s great organising principles.
“Once the sound is removed, the pattern vanishes and the molecules return to random motion. But with the blood, the pattern remained firmly imprinted, even after the sound had ceased.
“More astonishingly, wherever there were anti-nodes in the pattern – these being the high-pressure areas of the sound wave – those regions turned bright scarlet. The blood we received from the blood bank was a dark, maroon colour, which is typical.
“Although it contains high levels of dissolved oxygen, that oxygen is usually not available to the haemoglobin molecules because there’s no pressure applied to release it.
“When we applied sound – specifically that low-frequency tone – the haemoglobin molecules in the red blood cells absorbed the dissolved oxygen. The areas where this happened glowed bright red in the cymatic pattern, especially in those high-pressure anti-nodal zones.
“So, we quickly realised what was going on: sound was acting as the catalyst for oxygen absorption in the blood.”
Pressure, Reid explains, is needed to trigger oxygen binding to haemoglobin.
“That’s exactly what happens in your body, in your circulatory system, every time your heart beats,” says Reid.
“Of course, we already know that the heartbeat circulates blood, but what we hadn’t understood before is that the sound of the heartbeat plays a vital role too. That low-frequency thump actually causes oxygen to bind more effectively to haemoglobin.
“This is the same reason that when you’re immersed in sound – say, from a speaker system or at a live concert with a rich bass register – your body feels more energised.
“What’s happening is that you’re literally making more oxygen available to your haemoglobin molecules. So, when you’re standing at a concert soaking up all that low-frequency energy, it’s actually beneficial. Not to say that the sound pressure level on your ears is healthy – it often isn’t, especially above 90 decibels – but your body? Your cells? They’re thanking you. They’re receiving that extra oxygen.”
Beyond oxygen: the healing mechanisms of sound
There is, however, a physiological limit to this benefit – haemoglobin can only bind so much oxygen.
“You can’t go beyond 100%. Those little fingertip oxygen meters you can get, the ones that measure your blood oxygen levels, will usually read around 97 to 98% for a young, healthy person. But if you walked into a concert with one of those on, you’d likely see it rise to 100% once the music starts. You’d witness it happening in real-time.
“That means your body’s receiving more oxygen, and oxygen is absolutely vital for almost every biological healing mechanism in the body. So you’re literally powering your body’s healing capacity in that moment.
“Now, the second mechanism is one you might not be aware of, and it involves nitric oxide. This molecule is arguably the second most important in your body when it comes to healing. It plays a key role in vasodilation – which is the widening or softening of the blood vessels, helping blood flow more freely.
“Your lungs are a major site of nitric oxide production. And again, sound comes into play.
“Low-frequency sound causes resonance in the lungs. In men, the lungs tend to resonate at around 100 Hz; in women, typically around 150 Hz – though this varies with body size. When your lungs resonate at these frequencies, they naturally produce a large amount of nitric oxide in the alveoli.
“That nitric oxide helps dilate the blood vessels, increasing circulation and again, enhancing healing. So once again, music – especially bass – has a direct biological effect.”
Music and the healing power of joy
Beyond these biological mechanisms, Reid identifies a third powerful component in music’s health benefits.
“This is arguably the most beautiful of them all. I call it music medicine. It’s the healing power of joy,” says Reid.
“Think about it: you’re at a concert, surrounded by people you love, listening to music that lifts your spirit. You’re sharing an experience, immersed in atmosphere, rhythm, energy – and all of that generates happiness.
“That state of joy triggers your brain to release neurotransmitters like dopamine and oxytocin.
“Now, dopamine doesn’t just make you feel good – it has a powerful effect on the immune system. It signals your body to produce more white blood cells. There’s a direct correlation between elevated dopamine levels and an increase in white blood cell count.
“So when you’re happy – truly happy – your immune system gets a genuine boost.
“When you go to a music concert, especially one with deep, immersive bass, there are multiple layers of healing happening: increased oxygen absorption, boosted circulation via nitric oxide, and an immune system lift from joy-induced dopamine.”
Reid plans to publish his and Ji’s results in an academic journal soon, potentially revolutionising how we understand music’s role in health and healing.
