Four Reasons Why You Should Read Before Bed

What makes for a good night sleep? Is it a relaxing cup of tea? Or perhaps listening to music is something that helps you drift into your dream world? Actually, based on a study from the University of Sussex, they found that reading before bed worked the best. A solid seven to nine hours of sleep can prevent burnout, improving on-the-job performance, and advancing your career.

If that’s not enough incentive to turn off the TV and pick up a good book, then perhaps one of these points will convince you otherwise.

Reading before bed reduces stress and is relaxing

It is hard to stop thinking about your day, and for some, that can be what makes it hard to fall asleep and stay asleep. Reading a book takes you to a whole other world. No longer do you have to think about what happened during the day or what the rest of your week looks like. A book before bed distracts the mind, and now your focus shifts to how Harry Potter is going to defeat Lord Voldemort!

Reading before bed improves mental health

Stress in the workplace becomes a vicious circle and can start to affect other aspects of a person’s life. Mood, judgment, and overall health become at risk if you don’t get enough rest. Stress affects the brain’s gray matter, the neuronal cell bodies that are found in the regions of the brain that control memory, emotions, speech, decision making, and self-control. Reading before you fall asleep is a way to detox your mind giving your brain time to build up the gray matter it needs to tackle on each day. 

Reading before bed improves concentration and memory

Reading before sleep can improve how much information you can recall at a later date. In a study by the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School, researches explained that there are three functions to memory; acquisition, consolidation, and recall. Researchers explain, “Each of these steps is necessary for proper memory function. Acquisition and recall occur only during wakefulness, but research suggests that memory consolidation takes place during sleep through the strengthening of the neural connections that form our memories.” So when you’re preparing for tomorrow’s presentation, do so in the evening before you hit the hay. 

A better night sleep makes for a productive day

People trying to keep up with everything that is going on in the world, backfires and ends up hurting their concentration abilities. When you read before bedtime, you are training your brain to force yourself to concentrate on the words, characters, and storyline without the help of visual aids. Over time, your concentration abilities strengthen helping you to stay focused throughout your day.

Relax in bed with a good book knowing that you have time tomorrow to be productive. When you know how to speed read, you get things done quicker and more efficiently. Don’t know where to begin? Our Speed Reading Foundation Course is ideal for those who have too much to read and not enough time. Find out more today.