What if singing could cure the long Covid?

Since the start of the pandemic, treatment methods to fight against Covid have flourished. The latest? Sing. This would improve the respiratory quality of patients, according to a study conducted by British researchers and published in the journal The Lancet Respiratory Medicine.

The difficult management of long Covids

“Covid-19 can cause long-term illness and disability, which is increasingly seen as a major global challenge”, note the researchers in the introduction to their study. In the United Kingdom, specialists estimate that 1.3 million people suffer from long Covid, or 2% of the population.

Symptoms include loss of taste and smell, headaches, persistent fatigue, but also continuous shortness of breath, anxiety and loss of quality of life. It is on these last three points that the British researchers of theImperial College of London and theImperial College Healthcare focused their research.

Live better after singing lessons

To carry out their study, the specialists measured the quality of breath of 150 candidates. All suffered from shortness of breath for more than 4 weeks, some also suffered from anxiety.

The researchers divided them into two groups. A first received usual care. The other took a program called “Breath”. For six weeks, the participants took singing lessons with singers from theEnglish National Opera. The objective was to learn and hum lullabies, supposed to calm and soothe the sick. After the experiment, the participants rated their shortness of breath at rest and after physical exertion.

Result ? People who took the singing lesson noticed an improvement in their breath compared to the group who did not take the program breathing.

“Our results suggest that a breathing and wellness program can improve respiratory symptoms, including shortness of breath, and mental health in people with persistent signs after Covid-19 infection”conclude the specialists.