dance - benefits

There is not a lot that can be written on dance, as it a thing to be seen and experienced or performed. However much can be written on the benefits of dance and why people should dance.

benefits

There are innumerable benefits in dance and dancing. Dance can make us fitter and healthier, mentally and physically. Dance can also increase our social interaction and bonding with like minded people. Dance is something that can be done by all ages from infants to the elderly, Even the infirm can enjoy dance to some extent. Dance can be done as part of a group or even alone. Dance can happen in a variety of places and settings, and for different purposes and reasons.

solidarity

Apart from wars, dancing was the chief factor making for social solidarity in primitive life and there is every reason to suppose that is still the case today. The value of dance as a method of individual and national education was recognised as civilisation became increasingly self-conscious. In the Laws Plato remarked that a good education includes knowing how to dance and sing well.

environment

Dance is one of the most environmentally friendly activities, as it hardly uses up much of the precious resources of our world. The energy used up in dance comes from food we would usually consume. Dance does not need lavish places or buildings for it to happen, a simple music player with speakers and and a small piece of ground or field is all that is needed. Great dancing can take place using no more than instruments which were available just a few thousand years ago. Dance has fairly minimal requirements in terms of equipment and resources.

obesity

Nowadays people are leading physically inactive lives and rates of obesity are on the increase and dance can help to maintain a fitter body. Dance can have a profound effect on health and well being and it is far better to dance than to engage in repetitive forms of exercise.

benefits

Nowadays people are leading physically inactive lives and rates of obesity are on the increase and dance can help to maintain a fitter body. Dance can have a profound effect on health and well being and it is far better to dance than to engage in repetitive forms of exercise. For the individual depending on the nature of the chosen dances, there can be personal and mental growth and a more fulfilled life. There is a chance to form and sustain friendships and relationships, whether platonic romantic. Dance being a fusion of many forms of art, including music, literature and the visual arts, helps individuals to grow intellectually as well. Dance also exposes people to more music and studies have identified that good forms of music can improve our mental well being. Dance helps to improve rhythmic and creative expression and enriches our imagination and innovation. Dance has an impressive number of styles and forms and themes and there is something to suit most people.

dementia

The New England Journal of Medicine reported in 2003 on a 21 year study carried out by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine New York, on the effects of recreational activities on the elderly. The study examined cognitive activities such as reading books, writing, doing puzzles, playing cards and musical instruments. It also examined physical activities such as tennis, golf, swimming, bicycling, walking and doing housework. The study found that almost none of the physical activities appeared to offer any protection against dementia. The only physical activity which did offer protection against dementia was frequent dancing.

The study reported on the reduced risk of dementia, as follows;

Reading - 35% reduced risk of dementia

Bicycling and swimming - 0%

Doing crossword puzzles at least four days a week - 47%

Playing golf - 0%

Dancing frequently - 76%.

Dancing contained the greatest risk reduction of any activity studied, cognitive or physical. It was believed that dancing had these benefits as dancing integrates several brain functions at once. Dancing simultaneously involves kinesthetic, rational, musical and emotional processes. Of course the kind of dancing you do does matter, and further research is needed on this. However it seems sensible to conclude that folk dances such as garba and raas have many elements in them which make them suitable as dances for improving mental and physical health.