Use of Music to Improve Sleep Quality

Introduction

The purpose of this systematic review was to explore the literature to identify the effect that music has on sleep. Sleep is a vital aspect of health and quality of life. Problems in sleep occur for a variety of reasons such as stress, insomnia, sleep disorders, or old age, among others. Children with sensory processing difficulties often have problems with sleep (Koenig & Rudney, 2010). Sensory hypersensitivity has been linked to sleep disturbances; specifically, children with tactile sensitivity had 25% more sleep disturbances than their peers (Shochat, Tzischinsky, & Engel-Yeger, 2009). Sleep disruption is common among critically ill patients (Su, Lai, Chang, Yiin, Perng, & Chen, 2013). Lack of quality sleep may result in fatigue, a decrease in daytime functioning, and depression (Harmat, Takács, & Bódizs, 2008). As a result, problem sleepers may experience a decreased quality of life.

Music has shown to have many benefits such as relaxation, distraction, reducing stress, reducing sympathetic nervous system responses, reducing heart rate, and decreasing blood pressure (Harmat et al. 2008; Su et al. 2013). Evidence suggests that music has the potential to reduce anxiety, so it is possible that music counteracts psychological arousal before bed and prepares the body for sleep (De Niet, Tiemens, Lendemeijer, & Hutschemaekers, 2009). Lullabies are commonly used in many cultures to calm their children before bed. Multiple studies have found that listening to music can positively affect sleep quality in a variety of populations such as premature infants (Loewy, Stewart, Dassler, Telsey, & Homel, 2013), college students (Harmat et al. 2008; Labbe' Schmidt Babin & Pharr 2007), and older adults (Lai, & Good, 2005).

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...nced Nursing; 49(3), 234-244.

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Su, C.-P., Lai, H.-L., Chang, E.-T., Yiin, L.-M., Perng, S.-J., & Chen, P.-W. (2013). A

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