The impact of reading on the brain is a complex phenomenon. A study has mapped the activated regions, depending on the type of reading.
When you read a book, the words form much more than sentences: the scenes are visible, palpable. What mechanism is it at work? To understand this, scientists are already trying to identify how the brain reacts. A new studyin 2025, brought together the results of 163 other works, on more than 3,000 adults, whose brain was scanned while they read words, sentences, texts, letters and pseudo-words (words that are not, But who look like it).
Scientists were able to draw up a cerebral “card” of the areas activated by reading. And it is vast.
Active reading of multiple regions of the brain
The treatment of reading letters, words, sentences and texts is particularly condensed in the left hemisphere, and for good reason: it is in this area that language is recognized and treated. But the cartography produced by these researchers shows that the exact areas activated vary depending on what we read, which confirms what we know about reading: it does not activate a specific region which would be fully dedicated to it, but a complex network, which will vary according to what we read and how.
Reading letters actually activates only one group of neurons, in the left occipital cortex, while reading words, sentences and texts active several regions at the same time. Regarding the reading of letters and texts, it specifically activates the left visual and motor areas.
There is also a significant difference between reading aloud and silent reading. Aloud, the regions linked to sound and movement are activated. And, paradoxically, silent reading activates a more complex plurality of regions, because it requires more brain resources than loud.
The study also demonstrates that the cerebellum, a structure that plays a role in motor control, mental imagery, language and attention, is strongly activated during reading. The left cerebellum activates specifically when reading words (and not for letters, sentences, texts); The right cerebellum, very involved in the production of speech, activates throughout the reading process in all its forms.
The brain is influenced by reading
In addition to activating large networks in our brain, reading would also influence the brain, conversely. A study Published in 2024 shows that the brain of people reading a lot is slightly different from the others. Two regions in particular would be affected. First, the temporal lobe: ” The left temporal pole makes it possible to associate and categorize different types of significant information. To assemble the meaning of a word such as leg, this region of the brain combines visual, sensory and motor information which describes the appearance, sensation and movement of the legs “, explain One of the authors, Mikael Roll.
The second zone, which develops more with reading, would be the Heschl gyrus … which contains the primary hearing area. “” To associate letters with the sounds of speech, we must first be aware of the sounds of the language “, Details Mikael Roll. “” This phonological consciousness is a well -established precursor to the development of reading in children. »»
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