Sing to me and I'll Remember it

Post date: May 31, 2013 10:39:47 PM

SINGING to elderly people with dementia helps them form new memories, one of the first skills they tend to lose.

Music is known to aid memory, especially recalling autobiographical information.

Brandon Ally at Boston University and his team were inspired by the report of a man with Alzheimer's who could recall current events if his daughter sang the news to him to the tune of familiar pop songs. They decided to try it out for themselves.

We don't yet know why singing should help, but Ally says that music engages areas of the brain, including subcortical regions, that are typically spared until later on in dementia. Music may also improves attention, he adds.