Do you struggle to get your young children to go to sleep at night? If so, you may want to try lulling them to sleep with a tried and true technique – singing them a lullaby. If you have a hard time falling asleep yourself, you might want to try the grown-up version of this technique and listen to some music before you turn in.
The Verdict Is In
Studies conducted throughout the world have repeatedly confirmed that music can help people fall asleep and enjoy a higher quality of sleep. A meta-analysis of 10 highly reputable studies revealed that music can facilitate sleep for people who suffer from either short- or long-term sleep problems. It’s also been revealed that music can even help people who suffer from schizophrenia get some sleep.
It doesn’t matter how old you are. Music can help people fall asleep regardless of their age. Newborns, toddlers, teens, middle-aged adults and senior citizens can enjoy the benefits that listening to music before bed- or naptime can provide. These benefits include the following:
- Falling asleep faster
- Waking up fewer times during the night
- Feeling more rested upon waking
Your Choice of Music Matters
While no one knows exactly why listening to music promotes sleep, it’s speculated that it does so because music can have a relaxing effect on your body and brain. Music may also cause your brain to release chemicals that help you feel good. As you listen to music, it can lower your heart rate and slow your breathing as well.
Of course, for music to have those positive effects, you have to pick the right kind of music to listen to before bedtime. It’s generally advisable to select soothing music with a relatively slow beat when you’re looking for music that will help you fall and stay asleep. More specifically, you should look for tunes that have a rhythm between 60 – 80 beats per minute. Folk, jazz and classical music are often wise choices.
If you’re unsure how many BPM a given song has, you should visit songbpm.com. You’ll just need to enter the name of the tune and the artist who performs it and the website will let you know how many beats per minute the song has.
Beats per minute aren’t the only thing that should influence your choice of bedtime music. You should also make sure you don’t pick music that evokes powerful emotions.
Spotify recently examined its users’ playlists to find the top 20 songs people listen to before bed. The music streaming site reported that Ed Sheeran is a popular musician to listen to at bedtime. “Weightless” by The Marconi Union has a BPM of 60 and it’s widely considered the “most relaxing song ever.” “Blue Room Hotel” by Joni Mitchell and “Blue in Green” by Miles Davis are also great tunes that are often successful at inducing sleep in many listeners.
About Ben’s
Just like listening to calming music can help you fall asleep and improve the quality of your sleep, knowing where you can buy high-quality mattresses, accessories and furniture at discounted prices can put your mind at ease. And you can find all those things at Ben’s. Learn about Ben’s now!