16 Science-Backed Reasons Adopting a Dog Could Be Good for Your Heart
Listen to Puppy Bowl Referee Host Dan Schachner talk with Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum about how adopting a dog can be good for your heart.
(As if we didn’t already know that!)
Sports fans and pet fans alike look forward to Puppy Bowl annually on Super Bowl Sunday. But every day is a good day with a dog, so we've rounded up 16 facts that reinforce how pets can be good for your heart.
Dogs and your health:
1. Studies show that dog owners may live longer than non-dog owners.
2. Owning a dog may reduce your risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke by 31%.
3. There was a link between people with prior heart events who had a dog living at home with a 65% reduced risk of death.
4. One study showed dog owners who walk their dogs regularly may face one-third the risk of diabetes of those who don’t own a dog.
5. Dog parents may have a higher likelihood to reach their fitness goals than those without canine companions.
6. Pet companionship may provide important social support and is a powerful predictor of behavior changes that can lead to weight loss.
7. Dogs can help with chronic conditions and prevent chronic disease.
8. Pet ownership is an important form of social support that can benefit patients with heart disease or stroke.
Less stress with dogs:
9. When we see, touch, hear or talk to our companion animals, we feel goodwill, joy and happiness. At the same time, stress hormones are suppressed.
10. Studies show that the mere act of petting a dog decreases blood pressure.
11. Having a pet can help increase fitness levels, relieve stress and boost overall happiness and well-being.
12. Dogs help ease people out of isolation or shyness. Studies find that owning and walking a dog increases social interaction.
Dogs, pet parents and the family:
13. Dog-owning families often promote physical activity within the household.
14. Dog parents are more likely to fit in the recommended level of physical activity than those who don’t have a dog.
15. One study showed that dog parents are four times more likely to fit in the 150 minutes of physical activity per week recommended by the AHA than non-dog owners.
16. Dogs are always there to comfort you. They put a smile on your face every day.
