Pet owners will often swear their beloved pooch or moggie does wonders for their wellbeing, and now we have empirical proof. A has found dog ownership is linked to improved heart health for humans. This is an important finding, given heart disease is the globally.
While the new study focuses on dogs and heart disease, it raises the broader question of how pet ownership affects human longevity. Can pets create health in humans?
A study known as the “blue zone” study has focused on factors affecting for over a decade. have been identified as increasing lifespan in the communities studied, and many of these factors are increased by pets.
1. Natural everyday movement
Much of the focus on pets providing health has been on dog walking. But anyone who owns a pet knows there are numerous incidental physical activities associated with pet ownership – like getting up to feed their pet; ensuring the pet’s food and water is available; and looking after pet “accommodation”.
and have both been shown to be protective with regard to health risks.
2. Having a sense of purpose
This has been shown to be particularly important for groups at risk of, or experiencing, poorer health – including , people with and (including ).
Our (as-yet-unpublished) research interviewing older people about the impact of their pets on health has found pets could be protective against suicide. Pets are seen as reliant on their owners functionally (“need me to feed them or they will die”) and emotionally (“he would pine for me terribly”).
3. Regular destressing activities
Interaction with pets can reduce stress. There is evidence petting an animal may , and may improve some people’s quality of sleep.
The role pets play in mental health (as compared to physical health) may be where the strongest connection to individual longevity lies. There is an established .
4. Belonging and commitment
It’s in the area of relationships (three of the nine “blue zone” factors) that pets may have their most powerful role in longevity.
Pets can act as a , promoting social connections, conversations, and even leading to the development of networks of practical support (a form of commitment).
The connectivity of pets can even , as people feel safer in pet-owning neighbourhoods. Hence, pets can enable a sense of communal belonging identified as increasing longevity.
Improving mental wellbeing (often through social enhancements) may be key in extending life expectancy, especially for population groups vulnerable to poor social connectedness. These groups often have .
People with illness, , and the report their pets as providing nonjudgmental, simpler relationships than those with humans.
report pets reducing loneliness and social isolation. Pets may improve vulnerable people’s interaction with others either (improving social skills), or their social catalyst role can .
In acknowledging people’s connection to their pets, we save lives. In , people die staying with, returning to, and trying to save pets. Disaster management planning is increasingly responding to and harnessing this reality, preventing deaths.Why we need to take pets and health seriously
It’s also being recognised stay with violent partners for fear of what will happen to pets. Pet-friendly escape options .
Public policies that , especially in , have health-promoting outcomes.
It’s important to remember animals are not “things” – they are living, breathing others. Simplistic understandings (“one pat of a pet per day”) risk endangering animals (overlooking their needs; abuse), and some humans (phobias, allergies).
But for the millions of people who choose to have pets, often seeing them as family, increasing longevity is not the point. They add richness, creating lives worth living (longer) for.
