Benefits of the Arts and Human Health

By: Christian Kalunian

“Music has charms to soothe the savage beasts.” -William Congreve

Art can help you to stay healthy.

Music, dance, visual arts and other expressive activities are now being incorporated in therapeutic practices for ailments ranging from heightened levels of stress to cancer, and studies say it appears to be working.

            ShaneSavage-Rumbaugh, an art professor at Stonehill College, said art “is therapeutic by nature.” The arts, he said, have “always been shown to improve the health of individuals, especially with positive reinforcement.”

            Dr. Heather L. Stuckey and Dr. Jeremy Nobel conducted a 10-year study, from 1997 through 2007, released in February of 2010. The study focused on creative art, including the creation of sand sculptures, dance-movement therapy, music and composition, mythical storytelling and drawing activities, and wheelchair dance.  

            The study showed that patients who wrote about their experiences showed significant improvements in their physical health. Their stress levels dropped immensely, resulting in stronger immune systems and less trips to physicians.

            Visual art was used to help express what words could not, such as the diagnosis of cancer. Using this practice, patients were able to visualize their feelings, and become aware of how they were feeling. When asked to “draw” their disease, the colors and line structure were associated with emotions.

“Art is a refuge from the emotions connected with terminal and serious illnesses,” Nobel said in the study.

            This study also confirmed other studies on music, showing it is healthy for the development and recovery of the human brain. Music has the ability to help the healing process without the need for overly technological processes. Music lowered anxiety and helps stabilize emotional distress, as well as to “calm neural activity in the brain,” says both Dr. Stuckey and Nobel found in the study.  

            This comes as no surprise to professor Savage-Rumbaugh. “I find all forms of art to be extremely therapeutic and beneficial on several levels for people, whether it is to lower stress or to relax,” said Art Professor Shane Savage-Rumbaugh. His class collectively agreed that the arts are fun and relaxing. Students in his class said they enjoyed drawing and painting what they felt, but noted that it was “not as easy as you think.” “I try to keep my students focused on the process over the product. When they start to feel anxious and stressed about their projects, I try to real them back in to a more calm state,” Savage-Rumbaugh said.