LloydsPharmacy commissioned a study of people in the UK who suffer from chronic pain and discovered that four out of ten people use music to ease their pain and help them relax, with several artists and genres in particular found to be the most effective, the Telegraph reports.
Out of the 1,500 participants surveyed, 21 percent reported that pop music was the best at easing their pain, followed by classical (17 percent) and rock or indie music (16 percent). Popular songs for pain management included "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon and Garfunkel, "Angels" by Robbie Williams, "Albatross" by Fleetwood Mac, "Candle in the Wind" by Elton John, and "Easy" by "The Commodores".
LloydsPharmacy is now piloting many of these songs at select stories across the country in conjunction with their pain treatment services.
In the UK alone, around 10 million people suffer from chronic joint pain, neck pain, arthritis, headaches and migraines, and while music can be an effective remedy at any age, researchers found that young people were more likely to use music, as 66 percent of sufferers aged 16 to 24 claimed that it helped with their pain management.
"There are lots of different ways of managing pain, not only with medicines but also with lifestyle changes such as moderate exercise and relaxation," Andrew Mawhinney of LloydsPharmacy told the Telegraph. "After speaking to many people who are living with pain we were interested to learn just how many found music beneficial, which is why we're now trialing the use of music within our pain service in some of our pharmacies."
Of those who choose music as a pain remedy, 33 percent do it "as often as possible," while 40 percent reported listening to their songs of choice in the evenings.
"People in pain should try to find some activity to get fully engaged in," David Bradshaw, a Research Assistant Professor at The University of Utah Pain Management Center, said to the Telegraph.
"Listening to favorite music is excellent for that because it can involve both thoughts and feelings. No matter how anxious you may feel, if you can get absorbed in the music this can help with your pain. Choose music you like and know well, humming or singing along can help you engage in listening and distract you from your pain."
