A team of researchers, including from Japan, will begin a clinical study later this month to study whether transmitting vibration to the skin through a facial mask device can improve one's mental health.
Researchers from Nagoya University and London Trusted Therapy, an education and research company aim to eventually establish a drug-free, noninvasive approach to mental health care.
Their joint clinical study at a medical institution in London will involve around 30 people suffering from such conditions as ADHD, PTSD and depression.
Photo courtesy of Yasuhiro Suzuki, a Nagoya University associate professor. (Kyodo)
The participants will wear the plastic facial equipment twice a day for 10 to 20 minutes each time and record any changes in their symptoms and sleep quality.
Inaudible low-frequency sounds from natural environments, such as forest and beach, as well as classical music, will be transmitted to the brain as vibrations in the study.
The researchers also plan to use the facial equipment in Ukraine next year on 15 to 20 civilians and soldiers with symptoms like PTSD due to the war with Russia.
"I would like to explore the possibility of (health) care that poses minimal burden on patients in a conflict area where rendering medical support is difficult," said Yasuhiro Suzuki, an associate professor at Nagoya University.
Research jointly conducted by Nagoya University and Akita University found that 35 elderly individuals with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia showed improved cognitive functions, such as memory, after a month of treatment with low-frequency sounds combined with micro-vibrations.
Another experiment, using mice, also showed enhanced metabolism, muscle strength and cognitive functions.