Effects of Binaural Beat Music on Elderly Sleep

Background: Older people in long-term care institutions often have poor sleep quality and depression, which may negatively affect their health and welfare. Binaural beat music (BBM) has been proposed as a possible intervention. However, its effects on older people with poor sleep quality in long-term care institutions is still unclear. Objective: This study aimed to examine the effects of binaural beat music on sleep quality, heart rate variability, and depression in older people with poor sleep quality in a long-term care institution Methods: A single-blind randomized controlled trial design was employed and 64 older participants with poor sleep quality were recruited from a long-term care institution in Taiwan. Participants were randomized into the BBM group or control (sham) group (32 per group) and received 14 days of intervention. During the intervention period, participants in the experimental group listened to 20 minutes of Taiwanese Hokkien oldies embedded with BBM once in the morning and afternoon thrice a week. Participants in the control group only listened to Taiwanese Hokkien oldies. Questionnaires and heart rate variability analysis were used to assess participants' sleep quality, heart rate variability, and depressive symptoms.