Healing through creativity: Art emerges as a powerful health tool

Health has long been associated with clinics, medicines, and medical interventions. Rarely do people think of creativity or culture when considering strategies for preventing disease. Yet a growing body of research is challenging this narrow view.

Art, in its many forms, is beginning to be recognized not only as a cultural treasure but also as a potential resource for public health.

Music, dance, theater, and even community gardening might hold more power for health than many expect. A new international study has placed this idea firmly on the global stage.

Art study spans 27 nations

The research was commissioned by the Jameel Arts and Health Lab, a collaboration dedicated to exploring the health benefits of creativity. Nearly 100 studies across 27 countries were analyzed.

The team focused on whether engagement with the arts could lower the risk of chronic illnesses. These conditions include heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, which remain leading causes of preventable deaths.

Together, such non-communicable diseases account for nearly three-quarters of all preventable mortality worldwide. The study’s release was carefully timed, arriving just a week before the World Health Organization’s international meeting on prevention.

Prevention, not just treatment

“We don’t want to just treat these diseases, we want to prevent them,” said Dr. Jill Sonke, director of research initiatives at the UF Center for Arts in Medicine and lead author of the study.

“We would love to see funding and interventions move upstream from treatment toward prevention, and the arts should be part of that prevention strategy, because they really can help.”

Working alongside Dr Michael Tan, dean of research and knowledge exchange at the University of the Arts Singapore, Dr. Sonke led an international group of researchers. Together, they evaluated 95 studies representing over 230,000 participants.

The results highlight how creative activities may serve as protective health tools. The project received support from the State of Florida Division of Arts and Culture and New York University.

Building health through art

“If we are serious about reducing the global burden of non-communicable diseases, we must treat the arts as essential to public health infrastructure,” said Dr. Nisha Sajnani, professor at NYU Steinhardt and co-director of the Jameel Arts and Health Lab.

“Arts and cultural activities provide cost-effective and scalable tools for prevention that, when embedded in health promotion and grounded in community partnership, can expand access, close equity gaps, and strengthen the uptake of healthy behaviors.”

This perspective moves the arts beyond leisure or luxury. Instead, they become viewed as an integral part of community health. Theater, storytelling, and collective creative projects may deliver information in a way that formal health campaigns cannot.

They capture attention, stir emotion, and encourage memory, making public health messages far more engaging.

Health through joyful activity

The researchers emphasized that participation itself may carry significant weight. Health campaigns often fail when people lose interest too quickly. Programs struggle to keep participants long enough to see results.

By tying physical activity or health learning to enjoyable group experiences, arts programs improve attendance and retention.

A community dance group, for example, encourages exercise not through obligation but through joy. This subtle difference can mean the success or failure of a prevention effort.

Culture links art and health

The study also highlighted how cultural traditions shape health outcomes. A program that incorporates local dances, music, or gardening practices reflects community identity.

These activities feel familiar and relevant, making participation more natural. For instance, community gardening projects can strengthen both social connections and nutritional knowledge.

Local dance programs can merge exercise with cultural pride, reinforcing positive habits in a meaningful way. This cultural grounding enhances access and increases trust in prevention strategies.

Art questions still unanswered

Although the findings are promising, gaps remain. Many of the existing studies come from high-income nations. Less is known about how arts programs affect populations in low- and middle-income regions.

In addition, few studies follow participants long enough to measure whether benefits last.

More global and long-term research will help confirm whether the arts can sustain health improvements across diverse settings.

Creativity as prevention

Still, the evidence paints a hopeful picture. Far from being separate from medicine, the arts may complement it, extending prevention efforts beyond traditional approaches.

Art has the ability to touch emotions, build communities, and make health accessible in ways statistics alone cannot.

By recognizing creativity as a vital partner in prevention, policymakers and health professionals may open a new chapter in the fight against chronic disease. In this vision, art is not only expression but also protection, shaping healthier societies for the future.

The study is published in the journal Nature Medicine.

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