Reading Books Can Extend Your Life
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
United States
August 20, 2016 1:22pm CST
I like to read books, but I worried about all that sitting. I’ve heard that sitting is detrimental to health, and so had several scientists at Yale. They wondered if what you were doing while sitting made a difference. After a long study, they determined that it does.
People who read periodicals are 11% less likely to die than those who sit while watching television. Those who read books at least 3 ½ hours per week are even better off at having a 17% lower chance. People who read more than that reduce their odds by 23%.
Overall, bookworms add 2 years to their life expectancy. It seems the mental stimulation from reading, especially novels, cancels out the negative effects of sitting. This is good news for me, as I have two books going at the moment.
Are you a reader of novels? I like mysteries, crime stories and spy stuff. Which type do you prefer?
37 people like this
40 responses
@BelleStarr (61101)
• United States
20 Aug 16
I like Regency Romances ala Jane Austen. But I read much more non-fiction these days, historical and biographical books. Founding Mothers, Tudor Women etc.
5 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@responsiveme Sure. It's engaging our minds in the stories that help.She wrote stories.
@JohnRoberts (109846)
• Los Angeles, California
20 Aug 16
Thank you sharing such awesome news! I can only hope it is true! I have been a heavy reader all my life. A book at week. I am currently reading a biography of Mary Martin.
4 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
People who read have lots more going on in their heads. This keeps us active and alert. Can't hurt.
1 person likes this
@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
21 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace Surely that reasoning would include television.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@Asylum Well, maybe television in the UK, but there is no mental stimulation from ours. 
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
You have a point there, but audio books also count. It's not the eyes, it's the mental engagement that helps.
1 person likes this
@inertia4 (27960)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace I know I am not useless. I just feel like that sometimes. I have a few books to read. I will get to them. But I have been spending a lot of time online. And on here. So, this is also considered reading, I would guess.
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@inertia4 The simpler the item that is read, the less benefit. This doesn't work as well as a story where you find yourself engaged in layers, like with books.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
Your comment proves their point. People who feel useless have no reason to go on, so they don't. Pick up a book!!!
2 people like this
@Drosophila (16571)
• Ireland
20 Aug 16
Goodness! Now I simply must stop reading! I have hope to quit early!
2 people like this
@Drosophila (16571)
• Ireland
21 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace there's no point hanging around a party waiting for the place to shut! It's better to move onto another party when one can still walk there
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@Drosophila You must be speaking figuratively. Otherwise, I don't get it. Sorry.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
Why on earth would you want to do that?
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
Sure, it's not how you read. It's if your mind is engaged.
1 person likes this
@marguicha (223777)
• Chile
20 Aug 16
How about computers? I don´t understand why watching TV are not stimulated mentally. I love to read books but still don´t trust what Yale scientists say.
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
Sheesh. How educated does someone have to be in order for you to believe their research? Yale is good enough for me. The study showed that it is the level of mental stimulation that matters. Magazines help, but do not draw your mind into a story enough to have the same impact as a novel or historical book.
2 people like this
@marguicha (223777)
• Chile
21 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace I have met many of the top scientists in the world. They are not always right. I did not go into the marguerine trend years ago. Now it has been discovered that butter is better. But that olive oil is best.
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@marguicha It all depends upon the quality of the survey. I think the butter vs oil question was a matter of who paid for the survey (just sayin').
@marlina (154131)
• Canada
20 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace Yes, what we read makes us smarter, but will we live longer for it?
that's the question!
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
I believe it. Yale does not mess around with silliness. If they studied this, and they did, I think it is accurate. And, what you read does engage the mind, so it works too.
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@marlina That is what a large study showed. It makes sense. Use it or lose it.
1 person likes this
@pgntwo (22408)
• Derry, Northern Ireland
20 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace I wonder if re-reading counts? I'll occasionally pull out a favourite book and settle down to read it again, cover to cover. I must see what Amazon has on offer in the types of fiction novels I read...
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@pgntwo Sure, why not? As long as you are mentally engaged in the story, you would get the benefit.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
MyLot would fall into the category of "periodicals" I think. It helps, but does not engage the same amount of the brain as a novel or work of non-fiction.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40320)
• Laguna Woods, California
21 Aug 16
Yes! I love to read novels and, like you, I enjoy mysteries, crime stories and similar types of books. I also belong to a bookclub and I have found myself challenged to read books that are outside my normal interests ... like novels set during one of the World Wars or in unusual locations.
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
I should check into my library book club to see if there is still a conflict of time when they meet. If there is, I should check a different one.
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
I love whodunnits. I usually can figure them out pretty well. I enjoy using my mind.
1 person likes this
@rina110383 (24492)
•
21 Aug 16
I love funny, romantic novels especially those involving lawyers.
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
I think this is why Janet Evanovich is so popular, she adds humor to her tales.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
@MALUSE I can't read them in public. I laugh out loud, and people would think something is wrong.
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
I'm into good news, especially when it helps with health, happiness and longevity. (Too bad that last word doesn't end in an "h".)
@MissNikki (5237)
• Maple Ridge, British Columbia
20 Aug 16
I love to read! I read all types of genres - horror, mystery, graphic novels (a.k.a comics), fiction, non fiction. 
2 people like this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
Great. We will all grow old together, reading and rocking. When our eyes go, it's audio books for us.
@silvermist (19702)
• India
21 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace I have always loved reading.I like all sorts of books,mysteries ,suspense thrillers,police procedurals, horror,science fiction,and even poetry.
1 person likes this
@silvermist (19702)
• India
22 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace Any way,I am going to keep reading.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
22 Aug 16
@silvermist Me too. I feel better when I have a novel going.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
If you keep it up, you can read even longer.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
20 Aug 16
I read that one. I like all his books, but prefer the ones he wrote by himself.
@DnkHrth (268)
• Sri Lanka
21 Aug 16
Thanks for sharing! I am a real bookworm. I even got punished when I was much younger for staying up late in the night, reading books. Those days my parents prohibited me to read Sherlock Holmes. Because most of the stories were based on murders.
But that didn't worked out well. Sherlock Holmes is still one of my favourites. I re-read the series whenever I can.
I can enjoy almost every kind of books. Even at the age of 21, I still enjoy works by Enid Blyton.
1 person likes this
@simone10 (54187)
• Louisville, Kentucky
23 Aug 16
@ElizabethWallace I love to read so hopefully it will prolong my life some.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
23 Aug 16
@simone10 There is no way to check since it prolongs life only about two years.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
21 Aug 16
Of course. It's the content that counts, not the device on which the books are written.
1 person likes this
@MKAlubs (455)
• United States
20 Aug 16
Yes, that is good news for me, too. I love reading fiction, mostly literary fiction rather than genre fiction. I also enjoy reading philosophy, history and biographies. And I don't watch TV. It sounds like I may live a longer life. Thanks for that information. Go readers!
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (130213)
• Israel
4 Jun 18
@ElizabethWallace
I have heard many things that extend one's life but nothing to do with reading books. I love to read when I can. I love mysteries, action, thrillers and romance too.
