Music fights Depression

"If you pick up your guitar and strum a few chords every day, or are otherwise involved in the arts, chances are you are happier than those who don't play a musical instrument or participate in the arts." A survey conducted by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology studied almost 50,000 individuals from varying socio-economic backgrounds in Norway and found that there is a positive correlation between participation in the arts and self-perceived health for men and women. "For men, there is also a positive relationship between cultural participation and depression-in that there is less depression among men who participate in cultural activities-although this is not true for women," say Professor Jostein Holmen, a researcher in the experiment.
What surprised Holmen the most was that, despite a person's socio-economic status-manual labourer, teacher or the CFO of a bank-those who participate in music or the arts experience a positive effect on their sense of health and well-being.
The studies were controlled for socio-economic status, chronic illness, smoking and alcohol habits. Holmen noticed that participation in culture, music and the arts seemed to protect people from feelings of depression, but not necessarily anxiety.
The researchers hope the results of this study will encourage politicians to find other ways to provide preventative health care.
Wonder what the study will find if it studies musicians against the general population?