According to the University of Sussex, reading for a mere six minutes can help reduce stress by 68 percent. That doesn’t mean you should read a newspaper that will make you sad or afraid, but instead students should find at least six minutes a day to find literature they will enjoy, while simultaneously reaping the benefit of stress relief.

College students encounter many stressful experiences throughout their day. You might find yourself panicking about forgetting an umbrella or suddenly remembering you forgot to schedule a test in Himes Hall. Reading is so simple, but doing it every so often and with little effort allows us to counteract and negate stress.

If we didn’t do our homework, it would definitely relieve stress, but it’s just not a realistic option. Holding a book in my hand can help my mind escape and put me in a different world, allowing me to leave behind anxieties and troubles. While there are proven stress relievers such as chocolate or exercise, more students should try to lift their spirits with an interesting paperback book.

There are infinite benefits to reading. It grows vocabulary, which helps performance in classes. Reading helps students become more creative, more inquisitive and it gives an escape from day-to-day stresses. Every college student could benefit from reading, but professors believe their assigned books are more important than the ones students self-assign.

Perhaps more students would find an opportunity to enjoy literature if they were assigned less reading. As adults in college, we should take advantage of literacy. We’ve all graduated high school and moved on to this great university, so we should appreciate that and continue to grow from literature.

The National Sleep Foundation found that the blue light from screens keeps you awake with stress, and you can wake up feeling tired or anxious. Electronic reading is still reading, but it is less beneficial than reading a paper book. Screen time is bad for you, your eyes and your sleep schedule, so we should bring back paperbacks as a way to ease the stress.

When you read a physical book, you tire your eyes and mind out, but you get to relax and reap the benefits of doing something you enjoy. Students already feel enough stress, so maybe it’s time we help ourselves out, put down the screens and pick up those beautiful, moth-scented stacks of bound paper.

Jordan Miller is a 20-year-old elementary education junior from New Orleans, Louisiana.