What are the top benefits of reading books? What is the importance of reading habit? Is it good for your mental health?
There are a lot of such questions in the mind of new readers who look to invest their time in reading novels, poetries, or storybooks. In this article on the importance of reading, we have curated a list of top advantages of reading books for students, working professionals, and for everyone in general.
Importance of Reading Books
When was the last time you read a good book or an article? If you are like the majority of people who read very seldom, then you are missing out on a lot of benefits to reading books.
Over the last few years, we have become more centred towards social media and short news briefs, rather than reading books and long-form articles. We all know that social media negatively impacts our living, whereas reading improves it. Despite that, we all go for the thing that affects our well-being.
If you are wondering what are reading books benefits, then this article is for you. I have outlined the top benefits of reading fiction books that will help you understand the importance of reading and encourage you to pick up a book.
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Main Advantages of Reading Books & Novels
Here is a list of all benefits of reading books every day, for brain, health, and your overall lifestyle:
1. Improves your knowledge
Every book contains some valuable information. If you read a variety of books, then it can help you gain knowledge about multiple new things. You can hold conversations with other people on various topics.
If you choose to read a single theme or genre of the books, it can help you build your knowledge about that theme. For example, if you read science fiction more often, you can know about modern technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual reality (VR), how these technologies can be beneficial for humans. You get to imagine things that improve your imagination power.
2. Good for brain
According to a study, reading fiction can improve the theory of mind and help in preventing mental diseases like Alzheimer’s. When you read, your brain becomes active. When you browse social media or watch movies, you don’t need your brain to make additional efforts. Reading makes the brain exercise, which helps in keeping it healthy. This is a fine example of reading benefits for the brain.
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3. Reduces stress
Reading can positively impact your mind and body. As per a study by the University of Sussex, reading for just six minutes can decrease the level of stress by up to 68%. When it comes to reducing stress levels, reading is a more influential option as compared to going for a walk or listening to music. This is one of the main health benefits of reading fiction books.
4. Improves vocabulary
When I was in college, I saw a common thing among everyone who started reading— their main purpose was to improve vocabulary. Yes, books are one of the best sources to learn new words and use them in everyday conversations.
Every book comes with new terms and spellings. When you are exposed to these words in the form of a sentence, it becomes easier to learn them. This can eventually help you write better and choose the right words. You can’t simply ignore this advantage of reading novels, poetry, or even newspapers.
5. Better conversations
If you read fictional stories, you get to read a lot of conversations between the characters. Most of these conversations are common to our real-life. If you observe what the characters reply to a certain talk, you can learn what should be your responses in real-life incidents. You can learn how some characters keep the conversations going or why some conversations don’t get along.
6. Improves concentration power
In this internet-dominated world, your brain doesn’t really focus on a single thing. You go through hundreds of posts on Instagram within a few minutes, then you check your emails, browse Twitter, play a song, and the list goes on.
Reading is something that needs your attention to know what is going on in the story. Your surroundings fall away. It works like meditation for your brain and eventually improves your power of concentration. This is yet another example of reading benefits for the brain.
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7. Better writing skills
Reading and writing go hand in hand. Many famous and successful authors recommend that to become a good writer, you have to first become a reader.
Reading books can help you learn about the flow of the story, how the writers frame the structure, and how certain things are written. Hence, it can improve your writing skills.
8. Empathy
Several studies and research focused on the benefits of reading fiction books reveal that the lives of characters in the stories develop the ability of a person to understand other people’s emotions, feelings, and opinions.
Readers can learn to create and manage social relationships more effectively. However, reading only a couple of books won’t bring this advantage. You must read fiction books regularly, such as one book a month.
9. Enhance cognitive functioning
Before understanding the importance of reading for cognitive functioning, let’s first understand what exactly is cognitive function. This is actually the ability of a person to acquire knowledge, process information, develop perceptions, memory power, learning, decision making, etc.
Cognitive functioning declines when we grow old. But if you keep your reading habit alive, it can help in maintaining this ability for a longer time. So, the earlier you start reading, the better it will be for you.
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10. Better sleeping routines
Several doctors and psychiatrists suggest that reading fiction or non-fiction novels can prepare you for a good night’s sleep. If you are having trouble sleeping, you must start reading a paperback copy of a book at least half an hour before bedtime. You should avoid reading on kindles or smartphones at night because the light and screen can cause trouble in sleeping.
Which books are the best for you?
These are the main benefits of reading novels or the merits of reading books. But, there are various types of books in the market, written by thousands of authors. Which one should you pick? What if the book you read proves to be a waste of time and money?
Well, I have covered all these questions for you. In the Book Reviews section, you will find honest book reviews of the novels and poetries I have read. You can check the rating, type of book, and read the review to decide if the book is worth your time or not.
If you want to discuss this further, feel free to get in touch via the comments below or through the contact page.
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valuable write up on the benefits of reading books