iPods for Alzheimer's Patients

[Hum]

Henry Dryer sits slumped over the tray attached to his wheelchair. He doesn't speak, and rarely moves, until a nursing home worker puts his headphones on.

Then Dryer's feet start to shuffle, his folded arms rock back and forth, and he sings out loud in perfect sync with his favorite songs.

"I feel a band of love, dreams," said Dryer, 92, who has dementia. "It gives me the feeling of love, romance!"

Henry is one of seven patients profiled in the documentary "Alive Inside," a heartwarming look at the power of music to help those in nursing homes.

"There are a million and a half people in nursing homes in this country," director Michael Rossato-Bennett told ABC News. "When I saw what happened to Henry, whenever you see a human being awaken like that, it touches something deep inside you."

Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, affecting 5.4 million Americans. The disease swiftly robs patients of their memories and other brain functions, forcing most to live out their final years in nursing homes.

"When I end up in a nursing home, I'll want to have my music with me," said Dan Cohen, executive director of Music & Memory. "There aren't many things in nursing homes that are personally meaningful activities. Here's the one easy thing that has a significant impact."

Cohen's charity accepts new and used iPods and distributes them to nursing homes.

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[LittleNeutrino Veteran]

Reminds me of the film Awakenings

[Growled Member]

Music has been shown to help in a lot of medical situations. The ancients spoke about how sounds could heal all the time.

[Hum]

^ Music is a catalyst -- it helps to move Energy.

[Memphis]

This is a big deal and helps out many dementia patients. The farther dementia sets in, the more responsive people get to music, sight, touch, and smell. That is why in any modern memory care unit, everything is bright colors especially the dinine room.

[neoadorable]

very touching and hopefully more research will go into this. i think we all know of the therapeutic effects of music, of course so long as you don't do it to the detriment of others.