Nothing beats the happiness of coming home to a loving four-legged companion after having a long, tough day and no one can understand this better than a pet parent. A furry ball jumping on you as soon as you walk through the door can make you forget about your worries and stress, isn’t it? Ah, and not just stress and worries, pets provide a myriad of other health benefits to humans. In this article, we will discuss about the health benefits of having a pet.
How Pets Can Improve Your Health
Most people are aware of the happiness and joys that pets bring into our lives, but not everyone is clear about their health benefits. Research has proved that owning a pet can work wonders for improving your physical as well as mental health.
Benefits Of Pets On Your Physical Health:
People who have pets are less likely to suffer from high blood pressure as pets help maintain the systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
Pets help lower the triglyceride and cholesterol levels and hence, prevent cardiac diseases.
Having a pet can reduce the chances of strokes and heart attacks.
Pets also encourage exercise and help you stay in shape to prevent obesity, hence preventing obesity-related disorders.
People who have a pet in their house are found to have stronger immunity than those who don’t have one.
Therapeutic pets help in pain management and aid in the recovery of critical patients in the hospital.
Owning a dog reduces one’s risk of premature death by up to 70%.
Most people are found to make better lifestyle changes after adopting a pet.
Benefits Of Pets On Your Mental Health:
Pets keep stress, anxiety and depression at bay.
Spending time with pets can elevate dopamine and serotonin transmitters, which are known to have calming and pleasurable properties.
According to research, interaction with dogs boosts a “love hormone” called oxytocin. Oxytocin is a “feel-good” hormone responsible for social bonding, which improves our psychological wellbeing as we become more social.
Humans have the basic need for touch and a pet can fulfill this need on a daily basis. Snuggling, hugging and touching your furry friend every day can make you feel needed and wanted.
Most large dogs require a good amount of exercise, and such active dogs keep you moving, as you have to take them out for walks, exercise and strolls. These workouts substantially boost your mood.
Having a pet encourages you to have a healthy lifestyle, which helps reduce the symptoms of depression, bipolar disorder and other mental disorders.
Therapy dogs can improve the mental wellbeing of people going through cancer therapies or PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).
Having a pet at home can ease loneliness, especially if you live alone (and oh, they can also help you get dates!).