We all know the power of reading to stimulate, exercise and develop the mind – but did you know that reading can actually extend your life?

Results of a fascinating new study on reading were recently reported by The Independent.

Their research revealed that those who read books “live an average of almost two years longer than those who did not read at all.”

The scope of the study was quite large: “Using data on 3,635 people over 50, researchers found that people who read for up to three and a half hours a week were 17 per cent less likely to die over 12 years of follow-up, and those who read more than that were 23 per cent less likely to die, OpenCulture reported.”

To put it in a nutshell, “‘People who report as little as a half-hour a day of book reading had a significant survival advantage over those who did not read,'” said Becca R. Levy, a professor of epidemiology at Yale University.

If you’re a parent of a young child who is just beginning his or her journey toward literacy, you now have even more incentive to sign your child up for a quality reading tutoring program. Our Super Readers reading program – which can quickly take a young child, as young as 4 years old, to a beginning grade 3 level, in record time – might be just what you’re looking for, to put your child on the fast track to academic success. We offer our Super Readers program in 25 tutoring centres throughout the Greater Toronto Area as well as [var_prov_nl] in Newfoundland.

By helping your child read early and with a high level of proficiency, you will not only be helping your child excel at school, and setting the stage for successful learning throughout life but, as this research suggests, you’ll even be extending your child’s lifespan too! That’s quite a payoff!