Simon Landry and Francois Champoux of the University of Montreal have recently published a study that determined that instrumental musicians have faster reaction times than non-musicians.

In this article, to be published in the February issue of Brain and Cognition, the researchers report that “Musicians undergo long periods of exposure to synchronous auditory, tactile, motor, visual, and emotional components.” This experience in “a rich multisensory environment” fine-tunes our brains to react quickly to all sorts of sensory input.

There was also evidence of music lessons being a strategy for the elderly in helping stay alert and aiding in driving (where reaction time is very important).

Click HERE to see this article.