Pages

▼

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Surprising Benefits of Reading Before Bed

I always read before falling asleep. If I wake during the night, I also read and eventually go back to sleep. Hopefully the book won't be so engrossing that it keeps me up. This has happened, but then I attribute that to the skill of the author!

This article doesn't surprise me, but hopefully those who don't read before they go to bed will benefit from it...and we'll gain more readers. Yay!

Thanks to Deborah Harter Williams for this link to Business Insider.

In 2014, the Pew Research Center revealed that one-quarter of American adults hadn’t read a single book in the previous year.

And that’s a shame because those who read consistently exhibit significantly greater memory and mental abilities at all stages in life. They’re also better public speakers, thinkers and, according to some studies, better people in general.

Cracking open a book before you go to bed could help combat insomnia, too: A 2009 study from researchers at University of Sussex showed that six minutes of reading reduces stress by 68% (more relaxing than either music or a cup of tea), thus clearing the mind and readying the body for sleep.



at

2 comments:

  1. valleryAugust 25, 2015 at 2:04 PM

    I always read before going to sleep.But I've learned not to read something very exciting, or and this is very important, not the end of a mystery. Too often the ending is a let down and it sends my brain into overdrive. Last night I finished The Martian-talk about suspense. My brain churned for hours. i do recommend the book, althoguh I skimmed a lot of the technical stuff. it ay be Sci Fi now, but in a few years time-who knows. anyway, I always have a book to hand.

    ReplyDelete
  2. annoxfordAugust 26, 2015 at 8:25 AM

    Thank you for this, Janet. now I have amunition for those that ask, "You read in bed? I could never do that. Doesn't it keep you awake?" It's the nights I don't read, my eyes are open wide, staring at the ceiling.

    ReplyDelete