Researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, have found that receiving music therapy can significantly lessen a patient’s need for opioids and other painkillers after invasive surgery. The researchers tested 161 patients; 49 in the music group and 112 in a control group. After their surgery, both groups were offered painkillers intravenously at doses requested by the patient. Of those engaged in music therapy, 86 percent avoided the painkillers, compared to only 26 percent of the control group.

This article appears in the October 2018 issue of Natural Awakenings.