Music and Steroids – Music Facilitates Steroid–Induced Synaptic Plasticity

Music and medicine have always been closely related. This remains true even in hunter- gatherer cultures that are thought to reflect primitive human forms, as clarified by cultural anthropological and ethno-musicological studies (Lee & Daly, 2005; Merriam & Merriam, 1964). Interestingly, music has also been used for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders in hunter-gatherer cultures (Lee & Daly, 2005; Merriam & Merriam, 1964). However, in westernized societies, no established music therapy exists for neuropsychiatric disorders such as stress disorders, mood disorders (depression), and dementia. Experience has shown that music has certain therapeutic effects on neuropsychiatric disorders (both functional and organic disorders), and music therapy is currently being used in the United States and Europe in clinical and welfare settings. However, the mechanisms of action underlying music therapy remain unknown.