It’s been established that art and craft activities positively impact mental health. It should come as no surprise, then, that arts and culture events are equally beneficial for physical and mental well-being.
New research conducted by Britain’s Department for Culture, Media, and Sport (DCMS) demonstrates that attending or participating in an arts event, even if only occasionally or every few months, alleviates health symptoms such as pain, depression, and medication dependency, among others. Researchers revealed that music had a particularly strong link to an improved quality of life.
The DCMS study focused on 13 different groups of people, all of whom ranged in age from young to old. Evidence ultimately concluded that health and wellbeing improved when pursuing or attending activities related to the arts. A cited example was “Thursday at the Museum” drawing classes, during which participants over 65 years old reported greater life satisfaction after attending weekly for three months.
“Arts engagement has diverse and tangible effects on health,” Prof. Daisy Fancourt, the director of the WHO center and a co-author of the study, told The Guardian, “from supporting cognitive development and protecting against cognitive decline, to reducing symptoms of mental illness and enhancing wellbeing, reducing pain and stress, reducing loneliness, and maintaining physical functioning.”
By enhancing a participant’s overall well-being, arts and culture initiatives also reduce strain on the healthcare system. The participants of “Thursday at the Museum,” for example, created a financial dividend of £1,310 (about $1,643) per person, given that they felt better through the drawing classes and thus visited their doctors less frequently.
“[This] suggests that not only could further arts investment be valuable for individuals and the health service as part of a preventative health agenda, but also any cuts to arts funding or provision have to be considered a public health risk,” Fancourt continues.
These findings solidify just how relevant arts and cultural engagement is not only to individuals but entire communities. To learn more, check out DCMS’s full report.
A new study solidifies that participating in arts and culture events have positive health benefits.
Musical participation was linked most strongly with a positive impact on people's quality of life.
By engaging with arts and culture, people ultimately experienced better physical and mental health, reducing the strain on the healthcare system.
Sources: Culture And Heritage Capital: Monetising The Impact Of Culture And Heritage On Health And Wellbeing; Consuming arts and culture is good for health and wellbeing, research finds
Related Articles:
Googly Eyes Pop up on Public Art in Oregon, Delighting the Public and Upsetting Authorities
Sculptor Lorenzo Quinn on Sending a Positive Message Through Art [Podcast]
