Photo/Illutration A cyclist listens to music through headphones. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Most people would probably agree that listening to music is a perfect way to unwind or simply enjoy good vibes while studying or driving, for example. But now a team of scientists is sounding a cautionary note.

They contend that relaxing with sounds blaring away or even at low volume negatively impacts a person’s ability to study or drive carefully.

“Listening to music while driving, studying or going about other tasks that require attention can result in lowered concentration and efficiency, even if it is not played loud,” said a team member.

Tetsuaki Kawase, a physiology professor at Tohoku University’s Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, and his colleagues based their finding on tests carried out on people while they listened to music.

The subjects wore headphones that emitted a different sound in each ear.

The participants were required to push a button each time they detected auditory stimuli in their left ear, while simple sounds or a jazz piano tune were played in the right ear.

Test subjects’ brain waves were examined via a method known as magnetoencephalography, under which magnetic fields were used to check the responses of the examinees exposed to the two sorts of sound.

Although playing simple sounds in the right ear had little effect on the results, responses were inhibited irrespective of the volume level when hearing jazz. This led to a slight delay in the time the button was pressed.

According to the team, the outcome likely is due to the fact that the music diverted the subjects’ attention from the button-pushing sound.

The team’s findings were published in the online edition of the U.S. scientific journal Plos One in December.

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