6 Benefits of Reading Books
For any book lover, the experience of reading a book is magical, especially for those who don’t read e-books. The crisp texture of the pages, the gradual understanding of each detail, the curiosity that makes you want to jump to the last page and going into an entire different world while you are reading. Books give you so much more than just a story, they make your cognition strong and give you the gift of a powerful imagination and knowledge.
But the benefits of reading just don’t end here. Keep reading to find out more:
1. WE ARE ABLE TO DEVELOP IMAGES IN OUR MIND
Reading books can create visual images of an object or person even without the intent to. The brain starts functioning in such a way that if you read a sentence about how an object looks visually, you can easily identify it in photos and that too very quickly.
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Audio books are often criticized for not giving a true experience of reading and understanding a book. But it has been found out that when you listen to a story, the language processing component of your brain starts working, as well as experiential parts also come into motion.
Researchers also say that 70% of our daily communication is constituted of gossips and personal stories. So the active functioning of the brain is not only limited to audio books, even listening to other people can be a good exercise for your brain.
3. READING ABOUT EXPERIENCES IS ALMOST THE SAME AS BEING INVOLVED IN IT
Your brain cannot really differentiate between reading about an experience or actually being involved in it, whenever you are reading something as the brain triggers the same neurological areas. Books when read with concentration, can penetrate through your feelings, emotions and thoughts.
4. READING DIFFERENT STYLES OF WRITING PROVIDE VARIOUS DIMENSIONS TO THINK
Reading different pieces of writing enhances your brain activity, providing you various dimensions to think and understand.
Researchers from a university have found that close literary reading can provide your brain with multiple healthy and intellectual exercises, whereas reading for one’s pleasure can improve blood flow to various regions of the brain.
5. THE BRAIN ADAPTS TO THINKING IN SEQUENCE THROUGH STORY STRUCTURE
As every story has an introduction, a middle or climax part and an end, your brain learns to contemplate in a sequence and also develop a link between cause and effect. The more often you read, the more your brain familiarizes with this sort of thinking.
It is very important for parents to inculcate reading habits in their children which will help them develop story structure in their mind. This understanding is integral at this stage because young minds have the ability to increase their attention span which will enhance their comprehending skills.
6. INSIGHTFUL READING MAKES US MORE EMPATHETIC
People completely enter into the world of story while they read and they enjoy that experience as they feel every emotion very closely. They develop some sort of connection with the characters in the story. So such deep reading makes individuals empathetic to people in real life also as they realize that every person has a story of their own.