Singing and Happiness

Here is an interesting tidbit I recently came across on the Mormon Tabernacle Choir blog: 

A study (https://www.canterbury.ac.uk/health-and-wellbeing/sidney-de-haan-researchcentre/documents/singing-and-health.pdf) published in Australia compares the deep breathing aspect of singing to an aerobic activity, giving the body more oxygen in the blood, which improves our overall mood by releasing endorphins. Also, the concentration required in singing reduces the stress about problems we face on a daily basis, such as money or work stress.

The study revealed good news for choral singers: “On average, choral singers rated their satisfaction with life higher than the public -- even when the actual problems faced by those singers were more substantial than those faced by the general public....The support system of being part of a group, and the commitment to that group that gets people out of the house and into the chorus every week -- these are benefits that are specific to group singing. And they seem to be a big component of why choral singers tend to be happier than the rest of us.”

So...lift up your voice and sing!