I trust you read the previous blog (and watched the 3 minute video) about the power of humming to release Nitric Oxide (NO). This use of Nitric Oxide focused on NO being generated in the nasal cavity as a result of humming. It has been suggested by Dr. Klinghardt (and many others) in peer review journals that the increased in NO in the nasal cavity could be potentially effective as an anti-viral agent.
In the excerpted video of Dr. Klinghardt from the last blog, the main slide stated: “Simple Humming while exhaling instantly increases the nitric oxide concentration in the nasal passages and sinuses – the very tissues, where Covid-19 lingers for many days before infecting other tissues” (Weitzberg, Eddie, and Jon ON Lundberg. “Humming greatly increases nasal nitric oxide.” American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine 166.2 (2002): 144-145.)
After writing that initial blog, I amazingly discovered an ABC news item just released that Nitric Oxide was being used in an experimental anti-viral treatment at Ohio State University Medical Center. This was through use of inhaled Nitric Oxide (INO).
The release of NO through humming is covered in the first chapter of our book THE HUMMING EFFECT. As conjectured in the book, my wife (and co-author) Andi and I believe that the release of Nitric Oxide occurs whenever sound resonates a specific area. Indeed, our friend and colleague, Dr. John Beaulieu, has shown that when cells in petri dishes experienced the vibratory sounds of a tuning fork, the cells gave off NO. Self-created sounds such as humming seem to act as a sonic massage to our body, resonating the cells and structure of our body. We believe that during a sonic massage, it may be possible that there is the release of NO wherever the vibrations of a hum occurs. This idea has been speculated by many and we trust that its validity will some day be shown to be true.
In addition to Nitric Oxide, Melatonin, a hormone with anti-oxidant properties, is also released through specific self-created sounds, including humming. Dr. Ranjie Singh demonstrated this many years ago and wrote about it in his book POWERFUL SELF-HEALING TECHNIQUES. Melatonin has many different attributes, including its ability to enhance sleep. There is data that indicates that Melatonin works with our immune system and has anti-inflammatory effects. Some studies also suggest that Melatonin might be useful in fighting infectious disease. Other studies have shown that Melatonin plays a crucial part in the aging process and that it may act as an anti-aging agent.
Melatonin also seems to have anti-viral ability. As an example, here is a peer reviewed paper on that research. Some scientists speculate that since Melatonin levels decrease as we get older, that Melatonin may be particularly useful for the “at risk” population. Therefore, we conjecture that the release of Melatonin through humming may be another powerful reason to hum. Among other things, as noted it’s a great way to help get to sleep at night. And a good night’s sleep is always beneficial!
As described in the first chapter of THE HUMMING EFFECT, there are many other physiological benefits besides the release of NO and Melatonin. Perhaps one of the most important is the reduction of heart rate and blood pressure when we hum. This phenomenon is coupled with the reduction of stress creating hormones such as cortisol when we hum.
Think about it—one of the things that really compromises our immunological system is stress. If we can reduce the release of cortisol, as well as reducing our heart rate and blood pressure, this may ultimately be one of the most important activities we can undertake during this time of Covid-19. How many of us are stressed out because of the various difficulties that are occurring on a global level?
I’ll talk more about different ways of relaxing using sound and music in later blogs, but for the moment, we really want to point out the importance of humming to reduce stress and anxiety. Andi and I have found that if we’re about to go into a meeting or do some task that may be challenging and we find that we’re nervous, all that’s necessary is for us to spend a couple of minutes taking some nice deep breaths and humming. Our heartbeat and blood pressure most usually will drop quite amazingly—to about the level that pharmaceuticals might achieve. How extraordinary! Deep breathing and humming can have an almost instantaneous calming effect upon our psyche and nervous system.
Many of us are having difficulty coping with some of the extraordinary changes that are occurring at this time. Without going into the various reasons why, I think most of us agree that stress is truly predominant these days. However, it’s not been necessary to encounter a pandemic in order to experience stress, but that certainly helps. If you find yourself needing a chill out break, perhaps you’ll consider taking a sonic vacation through humming.
In the next blog, I’m going to discuss more aspects of the hows and whys of therapeutic humming. But in particular, I’m going to begin to focus on how to increase the efficacy of your hum and potentiate it—making the sound of your hum more powerful. I trust that the information will be of benefit to you. Remember—we will get past the pandemic time of Covid-19, but the positive effects of humming can last a lifetime!
