We are used to thinking of reading as an activity, part of work, study, or leisure. But reading is also a neurophysiological process that affects our bodies. Why not take advantage of the possible effects deliberately, using reading as a workout or, conversely, as a rest?
It would seem that we read for knowledge or for pleasure; there are no other purposes for this process. In fact, beyond these obvious benefits, reading has unobvious “bonuses. Knowing these, children and adults alike might want to read more often.
Reading Keeps the Brain Alert
Reading gives your brain a good, comprehensive workout, just like your body does in the gym. Watching movies or listening to lectures doesn’t have the same effect.
For adults who do not suffer from dyslexia and other disorders that make reading difficult, this activity seems elementary. But from a neurobiological point of view, reading is an extremely complex process. Regardless of what we read.
The fact is that the ability to read is not inherent in humans, like the ability to produce and understand spoken language. Writing, and therefore reading, came into being when the human brain in its modern form was already formed, so it did not have a special system for these functions.
The brain had to adapt different zones for reading tasks: the visual and motor cortex, the speech and hearing centers (even if we read not aloud but silently), the cerebellum, the frontal and temporal lobes, and the elements of the limbic system, which are responsible for memory. The process of recognizing and decoding letters into words and then into meaning alone activates at least eight areas of the brain and the neural connections between them.
Reading engages several complex cognitive functions at once: attention, short- and long-term memory, abstract and associative thinking.
But we are not limited to mechanically translating signs into meaning; we are simultaneously reflecting on what we read, which is to say, triggering even more complex processes. The more thoughtful or imaginative a text is, the more our brains must work.
Reading Exercises Our Attention and Memory
Giving the brain regular exercise at least keeps the neurons, the nerve cells that make up the gray matter of the brain, and the contact zones between them, the synapses, in working order. If we also learn something new, we contribute to the creation of new neural connections in the brain.
By converting sets of letters into words, our brain “retrieves” words and their meanings from what is called the mental lexicon. Depending on how often we use a word, our short-term or long-term memory is triggered.
Scientific research has proven that high involvement in intellectual activities in early and middle age reduces the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease in old age in those who are predisposed to it. For best effect, intellectual activities should be varied. Reading books is such a simple yet effective option that it can be made a “basic” activity, supplemented, for example, by learning foreign languages, playing chess, crossword puzzles and puzzles. The main thing is regularity, but if you choose really fascinating books, then daily reading “training” will be a joy.
Attention training in this era of information overload is useful to absolutely everyone. And if you choose reading as an attention workout, it is better to read paper books – they, unlike electronic gadgets, do not provoke us to be distracted by other resources.
Reading Immerses Us in the Atmosphere of Another World
While reading fiction, the power of the imagination helps us experience what the book is about. The brain reacts to the phenomena and objects mentioned in the book as if the reader were dealing with them in reality. For example, when we read the word “coffee,” we activate the area of the brain responsible for smell, as if we could smell the aroma of coffee. The effects of reading on the brain continue even after we have broken away from reading and returned to the real world.
Reading Helps Us Understand Other People Better
In psychology and neurophysiology there is such a concept as an internal model of another person’s mind (Theory of Mind). This term refers to the ability to understand another person’s experiences as one’s own and, as a result, to explain and predict the behavior of other people. Some people have this ability to a greater extent than others, depending on their innate empathy and experience with other people.
The reader has to analyze the hero, that is, make intellectual efforts and include creative thinking. The experience of understanding fictional characters is then successfully transferred to real situations. Perhaps not the least of this beneficial effect is that we physically get to live with the characters, as the study described above has shown.
Reading Relieves Stress
Because of the effects of disconnecting from reality, reading relieves stress better than walking or listening to music. And if you sit down with a book and a cup of your favorite tea or coffee, you’ll feel better even faster. It doesn’t matter whether you’re reading a national award-winning novel or a straightforward detective story. The main thing is to be absorbed in the process.
