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A study released in Neurology found that reading and similar activities reduced the rate of cognitive decline in dementia patients. Researchers examined the brains of 294 patients post-mortem and found a slower rate of decline in patients who reported more early-life and late-life cognitive activity, such as reading, writing and playing games.
“The study showed that mentally active patients — ones who read and wrote regularly — declined at a significantly slower rate than those who had an average amount of activity,” notes NPR’s Annalisa Quinn.
Other studies have found that the more immediate benefits of reading include an increased tolerance for uncertainty. Psychologists at the University of Toronto, for example, had participants read either a short story or a non-fiction article, then tested their tolerance for uncertainty. Participants who read the short stories were less likely to need cognitive closure, “a need to reach a quick conclusion in decision-making and an aversion to ambiguity and confusion.” The fiction readers, especially those who claimed to be avid readers, were better able to think creatively and not get tied down to one specific idea.
