A 2023 study by Psychological Medicine revealed that children aged 2 to 9 who read as a hobby show better cognitive performance, improved mental health, greater brain volume, and fewer behavioral problems than those who do not. With all these benefits, it's hard not to wonder: why not dedicate time to reading every day? Reading has changed in recent years. We are sponges of knowledge that absorb everything we perceive. However, we must not forget the importance of dedicating a daily space to reading. 'You have to dedicate at least an hour a day to reading!' my mom would exclaim, as a young Joshua would sigh indifferently at having to 'waste' an hour of his life reading every day. This is crucial during adolescence, a stage when we begin to develop our personality and form our opinions. Now, you might ask what neuroplasticity has to do with reading. Want to know how? When we are children, our neuroplasticity is at its peak. Reading allows us to nourish ourselves with knowledge and develop as whole human beings. An avid reader learns to doubt better and resist manipulation. Conversely, when used consciously, they can provide great benefits. This is the basis of critical thinking, one of the most important elements in the comprehensive development of a human being. At that time, I had no idea how that simple habit was silently reconfiguring the way I perceived the world. Their relationship is much greater than it seems. By having a greater capacity to absorb knowledge, reading from an early age improves our vocabulary, reading comprehension, attention, logical thinking, and other essential elements in our development. Access to multiple stories teaches us to put ourselves in others' shoes and to question the world around us. On the other hand, social media takes up a large part of our leisure time, sometimes displacing the space that reading used to have. This biological ability is what makes childhood the most powerful window of opportunity to form lasting intellectual habits. Each page is a brick in the construction of a broader, more empathetic, and critical mind. Each book tells a different story, with diverse characters, conflicts, positions, ideologies, and emotions. If we distribute that time over seven days, we are talking about about an hour and 42 minutes of daily reading: a relatively small investment of our time. The development that reading provides transcends the academic. In that same study, scientists state that reading 12 hours a week is the optimal point to obtain the greatest possible development. Furthermore, technologies such as artificial intelligence represent a double-edged sword: while they can be useful tools for structuring ideas and synthesizing information, their excessive use can reduce analytical ability and attention spans. During this period, our brain forms neural connections based on the information around us. It is one of the most effective ways to transform the way we perceive the world. Reconfigure your brain: read at least 20 pages a day. Sometimes, we prefer to consult an artificial intelligence before doing a brief search to resolve our doubts. This does not mean that the use of social media or artificial intelligence is negative. Although digital reading exists, it does not always connect with the reader in the same way as traditional reading, which can affect the immersive experience.
