READING READING READING

READING READING READING       

Who says READING comes on the heels of our lowest priorities?  BUT before anything else, please allow me to qualify and clarify that I'm NOT a voracious READER.  BUT having personally bear witness to the tons of benefits in READING, please allow me to leverage on this forum to vociferously promote and encourage READING [regardless of your strata in society [because READING is NOT a monopoly for the RICH and FAMOUS📗📙📘

Of late, a growing body of research indicates that reading literally changes your mind.  Via those MRI scans, many researches confirmed that READING involves a complex network of circuits and signals in the brain.  And as your READING matures, those networks also get stronger and more sophisticated.  In one research, the researchers used functional MRI scans to measure the effect of reading a novel on the brain.  And as the participants read an assigned novel over the course of nine days, when tensions started to build up in the story itself, more and more areas of the brain lit up with activity.  And the brain scans proved that throughout the reading period [and even days afterward], the brain connectivity increased especially in that part called 'somatosensory cortex', that part of the brain that responds to physical sensations like movement and pain😑😑😑

The increased ability to empathize was almost apparent during researches as it showed those people who READ literary fiction did show a heightened ability to understand the feelings and beliefs of others.  That ability called 'THEORY OF MIND' is a set of skills essential for building, navigating, and maintaining social relationships.  It further showed that long-term READERS do tend to have a better-developed THEORY OF MIND✅✅✅

Building one's vocabulary is one of the most obvious benefits.  Contrary to the notion that if you want to enhance your vocabulary, you just need to browsed through the dictionary, our human level of absorption is so low as compared to READING and absorbing the vocabulary you come across through your READING.  BUT as we grow and become more mature, the adults are the first beneficiaries of READING as it helps prevent age-related cognitive decline.  And although research has NOT proven conclusively that READING prevents diseases like Alzheimer's, studies show that seniors WHO read and solve math problems everyday maintain and improve their cognitive functioning.  Experts also encourage us all to start READING as early as possible in life as studies proved that people WHO engaged in mentally stimulating activities all their lives, they were less likely to develop plaques, lesion linked to dementia💧💧💧

Our takeaway:  READING should be one of the least expensive and least costly hobbies to engage with.  At this point in your life, if you still find READING as more of a chore, perhaps, learning more about HOW READING could improve your health and well-being will encourage you to go on a DIGITAL DETOX.  BUT I know it's a tough call because almost all of us are holding on to our respective smartphones once we hit the sack, getting used to that fallacy that social media and that smartphone are all WHAT you need to get to a sound sleep.  Often times, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.  So, WHAT better way for us to explore as to HOW far can we kickstart even with a modest READING [if NOT a marathon one].  This is a classic case of SMALL efforts, BIG benefits, and top it all, with the least cost possible💥💥💥