| Pets and Stress |
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| Paw Paw Hearts A specialty boutique for pets & their people |
considering.
The study examined the cardiovascular reactivity when exposed to psychological stress
of 240 married couples, half of whom owned a pet. The researchers exposed the people
to stressful situations (mental arithmetic problems and stuff like that) in a variety of social
support conditions: alone, with pet or friend (friend present for non-pet owners), with
spouse, with spouse and pet/friend. They found that the people with the pets had much
lower rise in heart rate under such conditions; better than with their spouse or friends.
This evidence the healing help pets provide has been anecdotal for years. Hospitals,
retirement homes and other caring facilities have used pets to help promote wellness
with a lot of success. So it's no surprise, especially where children are involved.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have conducted my own experiment by observing how
the people in my family and visitors to my home relate to my cat and, of course how my
cat relates to them.
My cat is a rather funny looking, very playful and affectionate youngish cat named Tony.
He is a "hairless" breed, called Sphinx.
Tony has many jobs. One is to help me to write by sitting on my lap and purring loudly.
He also reminds me to take breaks by standing up and walking on the computer
keyboard! I digress.
One observation that is true for all unknowing participants in my "experiment": everyone
that enters my house, friends, family members and even the FedX guy, upon seeing
Tony, their face changes and becomes somehow softer. It's as if just seeing the cat
makes them less stressed. Even the little girl who is very frightened of cats loves to
watch the cat from a distance.
My partner, a high energy executive of a multi-national company, is of particular interest
to this study. When he arrives home after work or travel, his body language is "Mr.
corporate leader". After greeting and kissing his people family members, he looks a bit
more relaxed. But it's after he picks up Tony and strokes him (usually followed by giving
him some cat food), that he appears to really relax and turn off from work.
Last week, I had a friend over who says she doesn't like cats. Later I found them on the
couch, and my friend said "this cat really feels nice to touch". Her face and Tony's could
be best described as "content". Of course the cat had a very special extremely loud purr
just for her.
So, the conclusions drawn from my very subjective experiment is that our pets really
enrich our lives. It would be safe to speculate that, yes pets reduce stress levels in their
owners. If you have a pet yourself, you probably agree!
Try your own experiment.... Ask your friends and coworkers about their pets and soak up
the good feelings they radiate. Enjoy.
Source: Cardiovascular Reactivity and the Presence of Pets, Friends, and Spouses:
The Truth About Cats and Dogs. Karen Allen, PhD, Jim Blascovich, PhD and Wendy B.
Mendes, MS http://www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/cgi/content/abstract/64/5/727
By: Ainsley Laing
Ainsley Laing, MSc. has been a Fitness Trainer for 25 years and writes exclusively Body
for Mind eZine. She holds certifications in Group Exercise, Sports Nutrition and
Personal Fitness Training. She is also a professional engineer and mom.
The study examined the cardiovascular reactivity when exposed to psychological stress
of 240 married couples, half of whom owned a pet. The researchers exposed the people
to stressful situations (mental arithmetic problems and stuff like that) in a variety of social
support conditions: alone, with pet or friend (friend present for non-pet owners), with
spouse, with spouse and pet/friend. They found that the people with the pets had much
lower rise in heart rate under such conditions; better than with their spouse or friends.
This evidence the healing help pets provide has been anecdotal for years. Hospitals,
retirement homes and other caring facilities have used pets to help promote wellness
with a lot of success. So it's no surprise, especially where children are involved.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have conducted my own experiment by observing how
the people in my family and visitors to my home relate to my cat and, of course how my
cat relates to them.
My cat is a rather funny looking, very playful and affectionate youngish cat named Tony.
He is a "hairless" breed, called Sphinx.
Tony has many jobs. One is to help me to write by sitting on my lap and purring loudly.
He also reminds me to take breaks by standing up and walking on the computer
keyboard! I digress.
One observation that is true for all unknowing participants in my "experiment": everyone
that enters my house, friends, family members and even the FedX guy, upon seeing
Tony, their face changes and becomes somehow softer. It's as if just seeing the cat
makes them less stressed. Even the little girl who is very frightened of cats loves to
watch the cat from a distance.
My partner, a high energy executive of a multi-national company, is of particular interest
to this study. When he arrives home after work or travel, his body language is "Mr.
corporate leader". After greeting and kissing his people family members, he looks a bit
more relaxed. But it's after he picks up Tony and strokes him (usually followed by giving
him some cat food), that he appears to really relax and turn off from work.
Last week, I had a friend over who says she doesn't like cats. Later I found them on the
couch, and my friend said "this cat really feels nice to touch". Her face and Tony's could
be best described as "content". Of course the cat had a very special extremely loud purr
just for her.
So, the conclusions drawn from my very subjective experiment is that our pets really
enrich our lives. It would be safe to speculate that, yes pets reduce stress levels in their
owners. If you have a pet yourself, you probably agree!
Try your own experiment.... Ask your friends and coworkers about their pets and soak up
the good feelings they radiate. Enjoy.
Source: Cardiovascular Reactivity and the Presence of Pets, Friends, and Spouses:
The Truth About Cats and Dogs. Karen Allen, PhD, Jim Blascovich, PhD and Wendy B.
Mendes, MS http://www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/cgi/content/abstract/64/5/727
By: Ainsley Laing
Ainsley Laing, MSc. has been a Fitness Trainer for 25 years and writes exclusively Body
for Mind eZine. She holds certifications in Group Exercise, Sports Nutrition and
Personal Fitness Training. She is also a professional engineer and mom.
