anthrozoology.org

Friedmann, E.; Thomas, S. A.; Son, H. S.;

  Parker, G B.  Gayed, A.  Owen, C A.  Hyett, M P.  Hilton, T M.  Heruc, G  A.

  School of Psychiatry, University of NSW; Black Dog Institute, Prince of  Wales Hospital, Randwick, NSW, Australia. 

  Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica.  121(1):65-70, 2010 Jan.

Abstract

  OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to revisit findings from previous  studies reporting that pet ownership improves outcome following an  admission for acute coronary syndrome (ACS). METHOD: Four hundred and  twenty-four patients admitted to a cardiac unit with an ACS completed  questions regarding pet ownership in hospital. Rates of cardiac death and  readmission were assessed 1 year following hospitalization. RESULTS: Pet  owners were more likely to experience a death or readmission following  their hospitalization, after controlling for key psychosocial and medical  covariates. When dog and cat owners were considered separately, cat  ownership was significantly associated with increased risk of death or  readmission. CONCLUSION: In this independent study, pet ownership at  baseline, and cat ownership in particular, was associated with increased  cardiac morbidity and mortality in the year following an admission for an  acute coronary syndrome, a finding contrary to previous reports.

In the fast pace of modern life, humans are experiencing health challenges at an unprecedented rate. Disease as a consequence of lifestyle is now common and is predicted to steadily rise. Obesity, mental illness and physical inactivity are all creating an increasing burden on our economy. Turning this trend around will require new thinking.

Research in public health has shown that restoring our connections with each other and with our environment will have benefits for individual health and for the community as a whole.

We now know that some of the simplest pleasures in our lives are among the most important to our health and wellbeing. Walking in our neighbourhood, interacting with people and animals, enjoying the natural environment have all been shown to play a significant role in supporting physical and mental health.

Mary M. Herrald, Joe Tomaka,  Amanda Y. Medina

This experiment examined the effects of pet ownership and potential mediating (e.g., social support) and moderating variables (e.g., gender, personality, pet attachment) on completion of a 12-week cardiac rehabilitation program. This experiment assessed pet ownership, personality, and psychosocial variables at the beginning of the program and followed participants through to completion. Results showed that pet owners (96.5%) were significantly more likely to complete cardiac rehabilitation compared with non-owners (79.2%). Covariance analyses ruled out several alternative explanations for the results, including social support, personality variables, personal efficacy, and pet attachment. Results suggest that having a pet may facilitate rehabilitation and that further research is needed to understand how having a pet or being a pet owner improves health outcomes.

Friedmann, E.; Thomas, S. A.; Cook, L. K.; Tsai, C. C.; Picot, S. J.; 

 Anthrozoos.  2007. 20: 1, 51-63

As the population ages and obesity increases, the number of older adult hypertensives is rising dramatically. Uncontrolled hypertension (HTN) increases, and reducing blood pressure (BP), lowers cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and renal morbidity and mortality. Cardiovascular reactivity, defined as exaggerated cardiovascular responses to various stressors, is associated with the development and progression of HTN and associated morbidity and mortality. Speaking is a social stressor, occurring frequently in daily life, that is accompanied by significant surges in BR. The current project was designed as a preliminary study to evaluate whether friendly dogs may be an effective intervention for moderating cardiovascular stress responses in older adult hypertensives. Cognitively intact, community-living older adults (n=11) with resting BPs in the pre- to mild hypertensive range (120-150/80-100 mmHg) participated in the study. The quiet-talk-quiet (QTQ) protocol was used to assess BP responses to speaking. The QTQ protocol, consisting of sitting silently for two minutes, talking for two minutes, and sitting silently for two minutes was repeated twice, once with an unfamiliar, friendly dog in the room, once without the dog. The dog was randomly assigned to be present either for the first or the second QTQ. An ANOVA or ANCOVA with repeated measures three-way interaction between dog presence (dog in, dog not in), activity (quiet, talk), and order (dog in first, no dog in first) was used to examine the moderating effect of the presence of the dog on cardiovascular reactivity to speaking; it was significant for diastolic BP (F(1,9)=12.8, p=0.006), and tended to be significant for systolic BP (F(1,8)=4.4, p=0.12). During speech, BP was (7/2 mmHg) lower when the dog was present than when it was not present. BP while sitting quietly did not differ according to the presence of a dog. Pets might provide a viable means of decreasing BP surges during stressful activities in older hypertensives.

Dembicki, D. and J. Anderson

Journal of Nutrition for the Elderly 15 (3): 15-31. (1996)

The familiar adage "pets are good for your health" is an interesting but largely untested theory. A new model was developed, based on pet ownership leads to better self care, to show possible associations between pet ownership with eating, exercise, nutritional status, and specific cardiovascular risk factors. Seniors aged sixty and above were solicited mainly at senior congregate meals program sites in north-central Colorado (n = 127) to participate in this cross-sectional, observational study. Statistical analyses of questionnaire, anthropometric, physiological, and biochemical data were performed. Dog owners walked significantly longer than non-owners (p < 0.05), and pet owners had significantly lower serum triglycerides than non-owners (p < 0.01). Results suggest that pets may be good for your health.