Cultural and creative activities such as dancing, singing or visiting museums can have a positive impact on physical and mental health, a European health agency said on Monday.
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The Copenhagen-based WHO Regional Office for Europe reported that music and singing, for example, have proved useful in improving attention and memory for people with dementia.
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The findings were based on a study of more than 900 publications on the benefits of the arts from childhood to adulthood
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"These examples ... show the ways in which the arts can meet damned or complex health challenges such as diabetes, obesity and mental illness," said the WHO's interim regional director, Peruska Austlin.

The study concluded that listening to music helps to control blood glucose levels during normal and stressful situations in people with or without diabetes, the report said.