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I got this as an email from a friend. I though I would pass it along

to you. I realize it may be a bit off topic in a way, but I think it

is worth reading.

Rue

PET POWER

A few weeks ago, I saw a TV interview with Bernie Siegel, MD, founder

of Exceptional Cancer Patients (ECaP), an advocacy group for people

facing cancer and other chronic illnesses, in which he discussed the

effects of pets on heart attack victims in Australia. After one year,

6% of the patients who owned a dog had died, compared with a 25%

mortality rate in those who did not own a dog. I thought that was a

pretty remarkable statistic, especially after he said that someone in

Australia calculated that if everyone in Australia were given a dog,

it would save $145 million per year in health-care costs. I don't

know how that cost compares with the cost of dog food, but it sure

sounded impressive.

For years, we've all heard about the therapeutic effects of pets in

healing, depression and stress reduction. I decided to look at some

of the scientific data on how pets affect us. I called ,

PhD, a research scientist at the School of Public Health at the State

University of New York at Buffalo. Dr. 's work focuses on the

effects of pets on human stress reactions.

PEOPLE OR PETS -- WHICH ARE BETTER FOR STRESS?

Dr. has conducted several studies that address such intriguing

questions as...

Which is better -- to have your best friend or your pet present in

stressful situations?

Which is better -- to have your spouse or your pet present in

stressful situations?

How do pets affect blood pressure (a common measure of stress

response) in people who already are taking blood pressure lowering

medication?

Can newly acquired pets affect stress?

In one study, Dr. looked at women performing mental arithmetic

problems alone... then with their best female friends present... and

finally, with their dogs present. Interestingly, with the friends

present, the subjects experienced large increases in blood pressure

(compared with when they worked alone). However, when the dogs were

present, insignificant increases -- or none at all -- occurred in

blood pressure.

" One study participant suggested that we compare the effect of her

dog's presence with the effect of her husband's presence, " recalled

Dr. . She and her colleagues laughed at the idea at first but

then decided to test it out. In this study, in addition to performing

mental arithmetic, participants were asked to hold their hands under

cold water and endure it to test both " active coping " and " passive

coping " responses.

Once again, and in both active and passive coping trials,

participants experienced dramatic stress responses in the presence of

another person versus only slight increases in blood pressure in the

presence of a pet. The consistent results led Dr. to conclude

that pets clearly are a preferred source of social support.

An interesting result of the study was that when the pets and the

spouses were both present, the effect of the dogs cancelled out the

stress that the presence of spouses generated.

[ArtCountry1] Hmmmmmm, interesting, dont you think???

PET/PEOPLE PREFERENCE?

One valid criticism Dr. encountered was the notion that the

pets really had produced no effect at all. Pet owners generally are

healthier, happier and better adjusted than those who do not own

pets -- therefore, their blood pressure is less likely to rise under

stress.

To test whether a pet would affect people who did not previously own

one, Dr. designed a study in which half of the participants

were randomly selected to adopt a cat or dog from an animal shelter.

The study participants, all stockbrokers who lived alone, described

their work as extremely stressful. In addition, they all had high

blood pressure (greater than 160/100)... and they were all scheduled

to begin drug therapy with lisinopril, a medication that successfully

reduces resting blood pressure.

Once again, participants performed mental arithmetic as the stress

provoker, but in addition they were asked to give speeches to

imaginary clients whose money they had lost. As predicted, lisinopril

lowered the resting blood pressure of all participants. However,

while doing the mental arithmetic or giving the speeches, the pet-

owning participants' blood pressure increased by less than half of

their petless counterparts.

HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?

Dr. Siegel has seen firsthand the extraordinary effects animals can

have. " People's physiology, their body chemistry, literally changes

when pets are around, " he says. Levels of the stress hormone cortisol

go down, immune function improves and, perhaps more significantly,

serotonin and oxytocin levels increase. These are the same hormones

that are elevated in a woman after giving birth, which promote

bonding with the new baby.

But why do these chemical changes occur?

Dr. Siegel thinks that the bottom line is the unconditional

acceptance and connection that animals consistently provide. In

addition, he notes, the responsibility of pet ownership can give

one's life meaning, especially in the absence of other close

relationships. " I've worked with cancer patients who literally could

not die because they had dogs and cats who had to be taken care of, "

Siegel says. " These people hung on to life until they were sure that

their pets would be provided for. "

Dr. Siegel explains that an important reason why we feel a close

connection to our pets is that they can be incredibly intuitive.

Often, if a person were sick in bed, a dog would come and sit beside

him/her, whereas if he were just taking a nap, the dog would not show

the same level of concern and interest. Animals respond to feelings,

to what is really going on with their owners.

" Animals have an incredible ability to be completely there and

completely devoted, " Dr. Siegel says. " How many of us can say that we

are totally devoted to someone else's well-being? Animals are, and we

respond positively to that. "

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