By India McCarty
Knowing every word to classic Christmas songs isn’t just an indicator of your holiday spirit — it can also demonstrate your brain power!
“Brain imaging scans show that music engages broader and more diverse neural networks than speech does,” a post on the UCLA website explained. “Studies have shown music reaches auditory, emotion, motor and memory circuits at the same time.”
The term “musical memory” refers to how we remember music, whether it’s song lyrics, melodies, or rhythms. These memories can become even stronger when they’re associated with other events and autobiographical memories.
For many people, Christmas is a time for celebration, spending time with loved ones, and listening to Christmas music. These songs are then associated with “musical memories,” making them all the easier to recall.
Remembering holiday classics isn’t just indicative of your memory or your Christmas spirit. It also demonstrates the many processes that are at work in your brain, from your hippocampus — responsible for forming and retrieving memories — to your prefrontal cortex, which manages attention and prevents interference from other thoughts.
Related: The Odd Origins Behind Some of America’s Favorite Christmas Songs
“Perhaps most importantly, your brain is demonstrating neuroplasticity,” an article from VegOut Magazine reported. “Even though you learned these songs years ago, your ability to recall them shows your neurons can maintain and strengthen old connections while forming new ones.”
“It’s not just about having a good memory. It’s about integration,” the article continued. “When you recall Christmas song lyrics, your brain coordinates multiple systems seamlessly. You’re accessing emotional memories, linguistic patterns, cultural knowledge, and often motor memories all at once.”
Plasticity Centers also looked into the relationship between Christmas music and its impact on our brains.
“Some studies have shown that portions of the brain that are particularly active when listening to music are the Nucleus Accumbens and Cerebellum, which are known for emotional response to music, as well as the Hippocampus, which has been associated with musical memory,” they concluded.
So, how can you test your brain’s neuroplasticity this Christmas season?
Based on “cognitive research and memory studies,” per VegOut, if you can remember all the words to “White Christmas,” “Silent Night,” “O Come All Ye Faithful,” “The Christmas Song,” “Good King Wenceslas,” “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” “Away in a Manger,” and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” your brain is in tip-top shape!
It turns out listening to Christmas music 24/7 over the holidays isn’t just a way to celebrate this time of year — it’s also a great way to test and improve your own brain power!
Read Next: Michael Bublé’s Hot Take on When You Should Start Listening to Christmas Music
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