Abstract
The influence of music stimulation on heartbeat fluctuation was determined. Subjects were 10 healthy males aged from 22 to 23. The music used was a Japanese pop song entitled "Kujira-12" sung by the group Judy and Mary. The heartbeat was measured for 5min without any stimulation, then for 5min while being stimulated by hearing the song, and finally, for 5min with no simulation. The heart rate was unchanged, but LF/HF decreased significantly during stimulation (LF and HF denote the low frequency component and the high frequency component of the power spectra of heartbeat fluctuations, respectively). This suggested that the stimulation suppressed the activity of the sympathetic nervous system during stimulation. LF was increased significantly after stimulation. This suggested that the mental stress decreased after stimulation. The stimulation by the music used in the experiment seemed to be helpful for music therapy.
