READ, READ, READ!

We ALWAYS encourage our kids to read…we do it with them every night, we dress them up for World Book Day….but why does that passion for reading often stop when we get to adulthood? 

Time? No! We have time to watch T.V or check our social media page….so why are we not reading? Use World Book Day to inspire you back to the books…because guess what….it’s good for your brain and your body too! 

Why Read?

A growing body of research indicates that reading literally changes your mind.

Using MRI scans, researchers have confirmed that reading involves a complex network of circuits and signals in the brain. As your reading ability matures, those networks also get stronger and more sophisticated.

Why children and parents should read together

Doctors recommend that parents read with their children beginning as early as infancy and continuing through the school years.

Reading with your children builds warm and happy associations with books, increasing the likelihood that kids will find reading enjoyable in the future.

Reading at home boosts school performance later on. It also increases vocabulary, raises self-esteem, builds good communication skills, and strengthens the prediction engine that is the human brain.

Helps Prevent Cognitive Decline 

The National Institute on Aging recommends reading books and magazines as a way of keeping your mind engaged as you grow older.

Although research hasn’t proven conclusively that reading books prevents diseases like Alzheimer’s,  studies show that seniors who read and solve math problems every day maintain and improve their cognitive functioning.

And the earlier you start, the better. A study conducted by Rush University Medical Centre found that people who’ve engaged in mentally stimulating activities all their lives were less likely to develop the plaques, lesions, and tau-protein tangles found in the brains of people with dementia.

Helps You Sleep 

Doctors suggest reading as part of a regular sleep routine.

For best results, you may want to choose a print book rather than reading on a screen, since the light emitted by your device could keep you awake and lead to other unwanted health outcomes.

Doctors also recommend that you read somewhere other than your bedroom if you have trouble falling asleep.

Can Help Alleviate Depression 

People with depression often feel isolated and estranged from everyone else. And that’s a feeling books can sometimes lessen.

Reading fiction can allow you to temporarily escape your own world and become swept up in the imagined experiences of the characters. And nonfiction self-help books can teach you strategies that may help you manage symptoms

May Even Help You Live Longer 

A long-term health and retirement study followed a cohort of 3,635 adult participants for a period of 12 years, finding that those who read books survived around 2 years longer than those who either didn’t read or who read magazines and other forms of media.

The study also concluded that people who read more than 3 1/2 hours every week were 23 percent likely to live longer than those who didn’t read at all!

Don’t Binge Watch All The Time 

There’s nothing wrong with watching an entire television series, start to finish, in a single weekend — just as there’s nothing wrong with eating a large, luscious dessert.

But binge-watching TV probably needs to be an occasional treat rather than your main source of intellectual stimulation. Research shows that prolonged TV viewing, especially for children, may change the brain in unhealthy ways.