By: Emmanuel Yassa
Watching television and reading is something everyone does for entertainment when bored. But what book or something you watched recently was the best?
How does entertaining yourself enhance you as a person and your health? Believe it or not, reading enhances brain structure, memory, attention span, and language connectivity which all go under cognitive growth. Even though television and social media have negative consequences, they also have some good aspects such as strengthening social cognition by social media, providing quick mental relaxation, endorphin release, and emotional catharsis through storytelling.
Academic evaluations from media institutions like the SAE Institute detail how comedic shows actively lower cortisol (stress hormones), reduce blood pressure, and improve vascular function, proving the physiological reality of “escapism.”
Senior Parth Tambe commented, “I watched a movie recently which was ‘Spider-Man Brand New Day.’ It was a good way to get out and it motivated me to get through the week so I can kind of do something similar in the future.”
Freshman Cole Eddinger said, “I like reading books because it is something that helps strengthen my comprehension and stops me from getting bored, like it’s interesting to read. It feels like a movie but it’s better.”
This shows that books and movies boost dopamine levels, making people motivated to keep going through their struggles. The bad thing is that these shows and books can be addicting, causing you to not focus on school and your responsibilities.
