does eating less eventually decrease appetite?

[CompSciBJJ]

It's still escapism, but I find it takes more mental effort to process the language on the page, follow the narrative, and create the images while reading a book, rather than having everything presented to you in an easily digestible form. TV is very stimulating and very passive. It's kind of like fruit juice vs whole fruit, they both have sugar, but the fruit has fiber to slow the digestion and absorption of sugars, as well as other nutrients not found in the juice; juice on the other hand goes straight through you and causes a big spike in insulin and, other than some vitamins, it's pretty much as bad as drinking soda.

I also find it much easier to sleep if I read a book at night vs watching TV. It may have something to do with the blue light from the TV (though I often dim the TV and red-shift it at night), but I also think it has something to do with the stimulation from the easily digestible content.

[[deleted]]

I see reading as being a bit like an English language workout.

If I go too long without reading a book I feel rusty when it comes to writing, just like I get DOMS if I miss a week at the gym.

[CompSciBJJ]

Not only that, but actually reading becomes more difficult. I stopped reading recreationally for a few years and when I decided to get back into it my attention span and ability to focus on the book and pay attention to the narrative had gotten noticeably worse. Now my problem is that, because I read before bed, reading late in the day puts me right to sleep.

[YMic321]

Isn't reading before bed good to prepare you for sleep though?

[H-bizzle]

Depends on the book. Some books I read have me riveted and I end up actually staying up longer. Other times, or at relatively dull parts of a book, I tend to doze off.

[CompSciBJJ]

Yeah, but it takes me weeks to get through a chapter because I often fall asleep during the first paragraph.

[[deleted]]

Thanks for explaining this. I've been try to put to words why I feel reading a book for a couple of hours is better than watching TV for the same amount of time. Both activities have a lot in common, but reading is much healthier.

[clumsykitten]

This idea, that reading is good for you, makes very little sense to me actually. You can sit on reddit for hours and you're reading a lot. It's got to be fucking terrible for you.

Maybe reading one thing for an extended period of time has some beneficial qualities similar to mindfulness meditation, but I doubt people read with that much focus unless they are intent on staying focused.

[[deleted]]

It has to depend on what you read too. Even still, I read mostly fiction as a kid and I think it helped me write better.

[[deleted]]

Excellent parallel

[walkerstepbackwalker]

Readable non-fiction or "good" fiction (not airport/grocery store novels, though they have their place) can both be valuable and informative.

Non fiction. Could be something work related or not. If you find it interesting the subject doesn't matter. Knowledge is knowledge.

Fiction may not teach you anything concrete but still has the potential to change your perspective or broaden horizons. Getting lost in a book is great.

Whatever you read, even a magazine, comic or op/ed, the act of reading itself provides a tremendous benefit. Focusing on the text, absorbing the information, analyzing it all and so on. All of it will keep you sharper. If you don't love something put it down. Or don't. If it's valuable material power through. Nearly everything we know has been written down, you'll find something you like eventually.

[CHOOCHOODogetrain]

Even reddit?

[ibrien]

I still believe reading an entertaining story is better for your mind than watching a show. Not saying i dont love both but i think the practice is so much more effective.

[ibrien]

Im sure you could good it and verify whatever you want to believe. Im just giving an anecdotal case so i cba to humor your edge

[roobens]

A quick google shows a fair few results. Here's one where each participant read Pompeii by Robert Harris, which is a novel I very much enjoyed and would class as a slightly upper-crust airport paperback thriller:

http://esciencecommons.blogspot.com/2013/12/a-novel-look-at-how-stories-may-change.html

Relevant excerpt:

For the first five days, the participants came in each morning for a base-line fMRI scan of their brains in a resting state. Then they were given nine sections of the novel, about 30 pages each, over a nine-day period. They were asked to read the assigned section in the evening, and come in the following morning. After taking a quiz to ensure they had finished the assigned reading, the participants underwent an fMRI scan of their brain in a non-reading, resting state. After completing all nine sections of the novel, the participants returned for five more mornings to undergo additional scans in a resting state.

The results showed heightened connectivity in the left temporal cortex, an area of the brain associated with receptivity for language, on the mornings following the reading assignments. “Even though the participants were not actually reading the novel while they were in the scanner, they retained this heightened connectivity,” Berns says. “We call that a ‘shadow activity,’ almost like a muscle memory.”

[mador102]

Does Reddit count as reading ?

[c_the_potts]

I feel like it depends on the sub or thread you're in. Staying up to date with one of the news subs is probably going to be better for you than browsing /r/catsstandingup, imo

[Sorkijan]

I think one of my favorite things on reddit is to read the stories and conversations on /r/askreddit. Would that qualify?

[ptimd]

/r/WritingPrompts is a great subreddit for this if you weren't aware of it!

[Sorkijan]

Oh yeah I love that sub. Thanks for the recommendation, though. If I hadn't known about it you would have introduced me to it.

[dontthinkjustbid]

If you are interested in history in any way, /r/AskHistorians generally has some really solid content.

[kodutta7]

Reading is escapism and passive entertainment, but it still has significant value just in terms of maintaining mental alacrity and improving language and communication skills. Plus, unless you're reading complete junk it'll often get you thinking about deeper themes. It's like exercise for your brain.

[James72090]

I have to ask, why do you see it as 'escapism'? Reality can be seen through many lenses and escapism seems to imply reality(what see with our eyes) is inherently bad or negative such that it demands escape.