A girl reading a book with a bunch of books beside her. Image Source: Obvious. Bookworms live longer.

Do Bookworms Live Longer?

Do you love reading books? A 2016 study says the more books you bury your nose into, the longer you live— meaning bookworms live longer.

Books don’t just boost your brain, but also helps you live longer. A 2016 study published in the journal Social Science & Medicine suggests that when it comes to living longer, there’s no better medicine than a book. It turns out that reading doesn’t only help us to tolerate existence, but actually prolongs it after the study found that people who read books for 30 minutes a day lived longer than those who didn’t read at all.

The study looked at the reading patterns of 3,635 people who were 50 or older. On average, book readers were found to live for almost two years longer than non-readers. Respondents were separated into those who read for 3.5 hours or more a week, those who read for up to 3.5 hours a week, and those who didn’t read at all. The researchers discovered that up to 12 years on, those who read for more than 3.5 hours a week were 23% less likely to dies, while those who read for up to 3.5 hours a week were 17% less likely to die. During the follow-up, 33% of the non-book readers died, compared to 27% of the book readers.

The reason that book worms live longer is that the books engage the reader’s mind more—providing more cognitive benefits, and increasing the lifespan, according to the researchers.

However, that is not the only benefit you get from reading every day. Reading can not only boost your brainpower, but can also promote empathy, social perception, and emotional intelligence, according to the experts.

Overall, the researchers wrote that reading books may not only introduce some interesting ideas and characters, it may also give more years of reading.

So, now that you know that bookworms live longer, go ahead and develop a reading habit for yourself. Here are some tips to help you develop a reading habit. If you have anything to share, feel free to use the comments.

Happy Reading!

A book quote. image Source: Blogger

Reference: Glocal Khabar