The 21 Amazing Ways Reading Benefits Us Now and Forever

Reading is underrated, here we look at the many amazing ways reading benefits us, and makes us better.

Being able to read is a gift, one we take for granted.

But it wasn’t something we could magically do overnight.  It took years to learn and will take a lifetime to master.

We learnt to recognise symbols (letters), put these letters together to make a word, then create meaningful sentences from these words.

There’s so much content available to us: books, magazines, newspapers, blogs…fiction or non-fiction, there’s something for everybody.

Read this post, by the end you’ll understand how reading benefits us. How it contributes to us being healthier, smarter, happier and better.

How does reading benefit us?

#1. Boosts your ability to focus and concentrate

Being engaged in reading requires your mental resources to be focused on one thing.

We live in a world with a million distractions, phones, TV, computers – we’ve lost the ability to really focus. Reading is one of the great ways that we can eliminate distractions to be more focused.

Reading helps us retain or regain that skill. To remember who characters are in a novel we have to remain focused, otherwise we lose the plot.

Focus and concentration is a skill which needs to be practiced, we need to spend time reading.

With millions and millions of books out there, we have an endless supply of knowledge available at our finger tips.

Reading can expose us to many new ideas.  Which create curiosity, and a drive to learn more.

It opens up a whole new world of possibilities, an endless supply of opinions, life stories, history and much more.

Reading a wide variety of written material helps to reinforce correct grammar. It introduces us to new ways of structuring words and sentences.

People have different writing styles, meaning we are constantly exposed to new styles of writing.

With an improvement in our grammar, we will notice when writing is grammatically wrong.

This is becoming common with news on the internet, articles are written in haste, with little thought with regards to spelling or grammar.

Empathy is being able to understand and share feelings of another person. 

Written material allows you to experience other people’s emotions and feelings. Biographies take you into the life and mind of someone, this experience can have a real impact on us.

It can change the way we view people – our stereotypes.

For example – if we think homeless people have nothing to contribute to society and are wastrels, reading can help us change our minds. If we knew more about them, how they got to where they now find themselves. We would be able to empathise, and amend out stereotypical image of them.

Reading helps us understand other people and the life they lead. Which provides us with a better comprehension of how people function within society.

Actively learning new words helps improve our vocabulary, like in school.

But picking up new words through reading is more fun.

When you read a new word you’re creating meaning of that word through the context of the material.

The more varied the material you read the more your vocabulary will grow.

Through the written word we can expose ourselves to a different cultures. The ideas, customs and social behaviour of people in a society different to ours.

For example – we can experience what it’s like to be part of an ancient tribe, life in a poor community or the social norms within a different country.

Without physically being able to experience another culture, reading is the next best thing. It’s a way to experience someone’s life, even people of a different era.

It broadens our knowledge of people and the world, we can view the world from a different point of view, as if seeing through someone else’s eyes.

Continuous exposure to words will help with your spelling. The English language is an amazing thing. But it doesn’t matter how well educated we are, some words still cause confusion.

Reading helps to remind us of spelling, useful when we proof read documents or emails we write – to catch mistakes.

We can’t always rely on spell checker, if they’re set up incorrectly, for example American English. So it helps to spot the right spelling for your country.

The English language changes, many new words are introduced. Reading helps us keep track of the introduction of new words.

Visualisation is the ability to turn thoughts into images. Essential for creativity, empathy and an essential life skill.

It’s something we automatically do, but reading improves this ability. Unlike visual media like TV, reading forces you to create your own images to represent what’s happening in the text.

There’s a lot of literature available to help us solve problems, whether it’s DIY books, fitness magazines or self-help books.

Reading improves imagination and creativity. To have a problem and imagine different ways to solve it.

It activates multiple areas of the brain, enhancing connectivity of the different areas.

Reading delays the onset of age-related cognitive decline.  This supports the need to keep it active – use it or lose it.

So if you want to help keep your faculties as you age, read, eat healthily, don’t smoke and avoid excessive alcohol. Embracing good habits and reducing bad habits will be one of the best investments you can make.

Reading is a great source of entertainment. There’s nearly an infinite number of resources available to us, on many topics.

Whatever our mood, we can pick up the reading material which suits us at the time. Reading is great to relieve boredom because it is active. Whereas, Television is passive and not as engaging for the brain.

It’s said that knowledge is power. Reading provides us the ability to absorb and learn knowledge.

Learning whatever you want is possible. There’s an endless supply of subjects available to us.

We can pick up a book, read a blog post or magazine, and learn whatever we want – setting up a business, growing Orchids, psychology…

To read and educate ourselves does not cost a fortune. With access to the Internet we have an infinite supply of reading material.

Reading has become accessible to those in poorer parts of the world. With the abundance of used books and access to the Internet, many poorer people are able to access information. A thing which many of us take for granted.

Libraries provide us with a place where we can go and read books, magazines and browse the Internet for free. This is useful for those with a lack of disposable income, or people who can’t access it themselves.

The action of reading a novel forces you to remember who characters are, back stories and what’s happening. With TV we get a recap. When we read a book our own memory is our mental recap.

With nonfiction we make a conscious decision to retain what we’ve read whether this be facts, data or lessons learned.

The process of reading creates memories, this means we are actively using are brain to further improve our ability to recall what we read.

We can now access millions of books wherever we are in the world. It makes it an easily transportable and accessible form of entertainment.

For those who prefer a paper copy of a book it’s an easy thing to take on holiday. Also if lost, it’s not a huge loss financially.

Reading benefits our writing and vocabulary, which in turn makes us better communicators. Being able to put across our opinion accurately and convincingly.

It helps us to be more empathic, which in turn means that we can understand people.  This enables us to communicate better, seeing things from the perspective of others.

We can read books on how to communicate better. Also, we can take lessons from fiction, which we can apply to our interactions.

Reading can help you get to sleep and have better sleep.

If reading on a gadget – make sure that it’s not disrupting your sleep. Blue light can negatively affect your sleep, most devises now have a blue light filter.

When I read before bed, I prefer a paper book. I find a paper book more relaxing, and it sends me to sleep quicker and I feel more rested.

Reading has been found to reduce physical stress in the body.

It can lower blood pressure and heart rate – although if it’s a racy novel it may have the opposite effect.

Losing yourself in a good book removes you from internal and external distress. It’s a great distraction from your everyday activities.

It takes you to another place, and if you’re in the flow you’re completely absorbed and engrossed.

There are many ways reading can help your mental health.

Many of which are mentioned in this blog, including reducing stress, taking away a feeling of loneliness and helping with sleep.

There’s an enormous selection of therapy books, whether its Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, other therapy methodologies or a self-help book written for general consumption.

The popularity of self-help books has exploded for a reason. They provide easily digestible information, which can help us feel better. They also let us know that we are not alone with our suffering.

It’s been found that it helps prevent age-related decline, which provides a better overall quality of life.

Reading helps not only your brain stay more active but reduces stress and helps with mental disorders.

Enjoying life is a contributor to longevity. If reading is something we can be passionate about, it will make life more fulfilling.

When we have free time or reach retirement, this faithful companion will keep us mentally active and interested in life.

Reading gives you something to talk about. It helps with starting and having conversations.

Consuming a broad reading list means that when you have a conversation, you’re more likely to have something to talk about.

What you talk about will not necessarily be the book or magazine. But instead the opinions and ideas you have taken from the reading material. Reading has given you knowledge about the world and people.

We’ve identified 21 ways that reading can make us better. All these benefits from such a simple thing. If you struggle to fit reading in set yourself reading goals to motivate you into action.

I hope you’ve recognised the value of reading. It’s a gift we have spent many years acquiring, the written word has to be one of the greatest human inventions ever.

It lets us communicate with each other, and we can share information with millions of people now and into the future.

There’s so much reading material in the world to absorb, we are spoilt for choice. Share these 21 benefits to reading, so we can all be healthier, happier and smarter – read on.