People who read live longer than those who don't, Yale researchers say

[Cattledog]

https://bigthink.com/personal-growth/yale-study-people-who-read-live-longer-than-people-who-dont/?fbclid=IwAR0czYX2VGL5i59V808U7OzFf4YFBTksHTW-QQNk-J2-_f-tz1LFbc_uYzM

Bookworms rejoice! A new study in the journal Social Science and Medicine just discovered that people who read books live longer than people who don’t.

Researchers at Yale University asked 3,635 participants over 50 years-old about their reading habits. From that data, they split the cohort into 3 groups: non-readers, people who read less than 3.5 hours per week, and people who read more than 3.5 hours per week. The researchers followed up with each group for 12 years. The people who read the most were college-educated women in the higher-income group.

[TigressDem]

1. Because the oldest people in our society actually know what books are.

Do you think it will translate to Kindle and/or other types of educated behavior?

[Haggard Celine]

2. I read a lot and it's mostly on my Kindle.

I'm only 52 though, so they'll have to come check on me in about 20 years.

[TigressDem]

16. LOL

Yeah.

It took me awhile to move to Kindle.

I am hoping it's the reading and not the actual books.

[MineralMan]

20. It's the reading, not the medium.

Of that I'm certain. Reading keeps the mind active and learning. That's the key.

[Haggard Celine]

25. I worried about that at first, too.

I actually like reading on my Kindle more. The background is lit and that helps a lot. I don’t like bright light, so I guess the bulbs in my lamp don’t have enough wattage. I was straining my eyes while reading, and that isn’t good. Some Kindles don’t have background light, I think, so I wouldn’t get one of those. I think you’ll like having all your books at your fingertips. Well, most of them anyway.

[TigressDem]

26. I put my text in reverse. White on Black.

Easier on the eyes for me.

Less battery power for my phone which I use as my kindle.

[scarletlib]

12. I read everything on anything. The backs of cans, cereal boxes etc

News on line & off. Books in traditional format, Kindle and Nook. Hours every day.

[TigressDem]

17. Yeah, been called a voracious reader myself.

But there still is something special about a book in one's hand.

[Demsrule86]

39. Hey a cereal box can be interesting when it is all that is available! And sometimes they give you a

a prize. Recently, I found an old book at the library that my Mom had years ago...called the Devils Cub by Georgette Heyer-it was being taken out of circulation so it couldn't be borrowed but was still on the shelf-I offered to buy it but the librarian just gave it to me. It was still an amazing book- a frivolous regency romance-old school. My parents never censored my reading by the time I was 10, I could read anything in the library. I reread old favorites.

[yorkster]

3. It's because they read about......

how to live longer.

Just kidding. This is one study I'm glad to know about.

[womanofthehills]

27. I think it's kind of true

Lots of avid readers, read about lots of subjects - nutrition, environmental toxins, longevity, etc.

[tanyev]

4. Woohoo!

[Maraya1969]

5. Kind of funny how you can click a button and listen to the article instead of reading it.

I actually prefer reading because it is quicker. I almost never use the audio. Also if I can find information on the net rather than watch an entire Youtube video I will. Those videos just drag on and on..................

[hauckeye]

7. Yes!! Me too

I would much rather read an article than watch a video on the topic

[dickthegrouch]

21. Except history. I hated that in school

Because it was so dry and irrelevant to my passion for electronics and computers. Only in later years have I begun to appreciate how the history fits into things. It was actually James Burke’s “Connections” series on TV that really brought it all together for me.
I still couldn’t care less that Henry VIII had VI wives, or what dates he actually lived. But the effects through time since are fascinating when brought to life in the various dramas and documentaries.

[yardwork]

35. I loved Connections! That's how history should be taught.

I love history, but it's unfortunate that it's often not taught well. Nobody wants or needs to memorize lists of dates and disconnected facts. It would be like teaching chemistry by having kids memorize the Periodic Table instead of learning how the elements interact.

[Hortensis]

11. Much quicker. You can also skim and search long articles for

points of particular interest. YouTube's for musicians and kittens playing, people acting ridiculous and for my husband to find out how to get a thingamajig back into a tractor engine.

[Diamond_Dog]

13. I agree 100%

Unless it’s music …. I don’t care for You Tube videos for information. Especially when there are ads in the beginning you can’t fast-forward through.

I’m actually a pretty fast reader (or so I’ve been told).

[3auld6phart]

14. Agree

with you. I’d sooner read the book or item than see the visual movie or the item.sadly
I’m down to the Kindle or my IPad . Can enlarge the print.Macular D and detach retina
Losing vision. Can’t complain 86 yo to be expected I suppose. Many,many books over the
years.

[Silent3]

23. Even worse, I hate when I see an interesting story title and it links to video

I just want to read the story, dammit.

[Ilsa]

43. Yep. I usually need to keep the sound off, too, so I'd rather read.

[LiberalFighter]

24. I totally agree.

I have a genetic hearing loss that does not allow me to use hearing aids that others do. Part of the reason why I don't like listening to audio books or video. And they are too slow compared to reading.

[yardwork]

32. Me too! I don't like the noise.

[kimbutgar]

6. My 91 year old mother in law is still an avid reader

And she’s still very sharp. Mobility wise she’s getting slower but her brain is still sharp.

When I do my senior moving job those seniors who I have to pack up an entire library are also still sharp.

[Tree Lady]

22. Yep my 94 yr old mom reads a ton of books

I went to every free library in town and took a book or 2 with permission and leaving a lot of mine and brought her a huge bag of books few months ago.

She had eye surgery in her late 80's on both eyes and is reading fine.

She reads romantic fluff so obviously you don't have to read educational only to live long

[luvs2sing]

8. When my sharp-as-a-tack 95-year old grandmother..

moved in with my parents, they were shocked when they began getting newspapers from all over the country in the mail. Grandma subscribed to AND READ the daily papers from every town where her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren lived. When I went to visit, Grandma could talk to me knowledgeably, sometimes more knowledgeably than me, about what was going on in the city where I live. She was a gem!

[yardwork]

36. It's very sad that those good local newspapers don't exist anymore.

[Retrograde]

9. My mother had a book-a-day habit in her 80s

mysteries, mostly, but every afternoon she read for 3 hours or so. Probably why her mind was still sharp when she died at 90. (I was just about to get her to try Kindle at the time).

Do audio books count? About half my books these days are audio: it lets me double-task when doing mindless house and garden work - come to think of it, that's how soap operas were invented: they gave housewives in the 20s and 30s stories to follow while they did the drudge work.

[exboyfil]

10. Do audiobooks count?

I walk three hours a day and listen to audiobooks while walking. I also do some conventional reading, but it is not nearly as much. At 20 hours plus/week I usually get through one large novel or non-fiction book a week.

[Buckeyeblue]

15. My guess is no

Reading words on a page activates a different part of your brain than listening. I believe it has to do with complex critical thinking. Listening doesn't engage in quite the same way.

But I could be wrong.

[Demsrule86]

40. Audiobooks are great, I listen while driving. I like podcasts too...and think what a gift an

audiobook is for those who can't read well due to poor vision.

[FSogol]

18. Because no one ever set down "Of Human Bondage" & said, "Hold my beer & watch this!"

[Demsrule86]

41. I read for pleasure and entertainment and health stuff. There is enough misery in this world

without reading about it...I want to read the Hillary Clinton /Louise Penny mystery-State of Terror. I also want to read Patterson/Dolly Parton- Run Rose Run...

[miyazaki]

19. People who don't die early live longer.

[Model35mech]

28. And only very very rarely drown, fall off cliffs, crash bicycles or

get gored by bison while reading.

[betsuni]

29. Inside good. Reading is mostly done indoors.

[Model35mech]

37. Yes, but beware the avalanche of books when the bookcase fails...

also carbon monoxide, slippery bath tubs. How do you catch yourself when carrying books/reading material in and out of the bath?

My uncle was always afraid he'd be killed by a falling Meteorite!, well a bound copy of it.

[betsuni]

38. There are designated bathtub books in bad condition so it doesn't matter if they get wet.

I will save myself first if slip.

[Ilsa]

45. I used to take old, easily replaceable paperbacks on hiking trips.

If no one else is reading, you can use the read portion for toilet paper (pack out!) or starter fuel if a campfire is allowed.

[Demsrule86]

42. That is true...

[Emile]

30. and short people live longer than tall people.

Last edited Mon Jul 4, 2022, 07:47 AM - Edit history (1)

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12586217/#:~:text=Findings%20based%20on%20millions%20of,to%20have%20longer%20average%20lifespans.

and bald headed men are better lovers!

[yardwork]

31. Well, association is not causation.

There are a lot of reasons why the same people who read a lot would be those who are more economically secure. People who are less stressed live longer. It might not be the reading that's causing it.

[eShirl]

33. Does reading the internets all day count?

[leftyladyfrommo]

34. We tend to stay in quiet safe places where we can

read in peace.

[msfiddlestix]

44. Well, I think musicians live longer.. :)

I know it's better than drugs for keeping stress levels down, prescriptions or otherwise!

of course a little cannabis now and then doesn't hurt either... makes for more creative music making..