Reading Books Can Improve Memory
If you’re looking for ways to enhance your memory and focus and alleviate stress, reading does wonders for your brain. The stimulating activities in reading have proven to actually slow down mental decline in old age for those who participated in more physically stimulating activities throughout their lifetimes. Research has shown that reading to children can help them process new information better and retain it for a longer period of time. It also helps them to perform better on standardized tests of general intelligence. A good book is just as important as playing board games and listening to music when teaching kids how to think and reason.
The act of reading creates what is called “analogous memory,” which is the mental equivalent of our real-world analogues. You’ve probably heard the phrase “you think like an apple.” This refers to the ability to reason the same thing in the same way. Analogous memory allows you to think in pictures, so if you look at a picture of a cow, you can reason that a cow eats grass. The same is true for reading. If you read a page about a dog, you can create an image in your head of a dog eating a hamburger or walking around the block.
Another way reading improves memory is that it lowers the risk of developing dementia. A large amount of scientific research has been conducted over the years on how the mind functions, especially how it affects the ageing process. Most of the studies have proven that reading is an activity that has positive benefits not only on the cognitive function of the brain but also on overall health. Regular reading can help keep the brain healthy and disease-free by lowering the risk of developing Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia. In addition, experts have found that regular readers tend to be happier than those who don’t read as much.
Lastly, reading improves memory because it expands the capacity for absorption. Psychologists have found that the ability to absorb information is directly related to how much stress we have in our lives. When we are stressed out, we lose the ability to properly absorb information and the brain’s ability to create new mental pictures is also negatively affected. The solution? Reading!
Mental stress affects our physical health as well! As the brain fights the mental strain, the body becomes fatigued. Not only does this affect your mental health, but also your physical health as well. If you’re a person who has a hard time reading or learning new things, you’re more likely to have a physical problem such as headaches, back pain, insomnia, and muscle aches.
As you can see, reading improves memory by decreasing the stress levels in your everyday life and stimulating your cognitive decline. In addition to having great mental health, reading can benefit your physical health as well. When you have a good memory, you are more likely to be able to think about the next task and remember what you just read. You’re also less likely to have a problem-solving skills short term memory problem. This means that if you’re having a problem with your daily tasks, you might as well do something fun and cognitively challenging that requires problem-solving skills!