Around 61 percent of American households own a pet, and now there are even more reasons to. Do you ever wonder why you feel so happy when you come home to your dog at the end of the day or even when you pass a dog on the street? There is actually science behind this! The National Center for Health Research and other organizations across the globe have conducted studies and have found health benefits from the presence of pets. While this correlation is still in the early stages of research, people who own pets generally have less visits to the doctor each year. The German study took place in 1996 and 2001, and results show that “people who said they had a pet in both 1996 and 2001 had the fewest doctor visits, followed by people who had acquired a pet by 2001; the group of people who did not have a pet at either time had the highest number of doctor visits” according to the National Center for Health Research. A test was performed on young children, and in the first trial there was no dog present in the room. However, there was a dog present in the second trial, and the trial with the dog present in the room showed results of lower blood pressure and fewer signs of stress.

People are also more likely to be social when with a dog, and one part of the study showed that people who walked with a dog were more likely to stop and talk to other people than a person walking without a dog. One part of the research that has just been started is the impact of growing up with pets on the development of allergies. So far, the results have shown that children who are around dogs or cats from birth are less likely to develop allergies later in life than those who grow up without pets or adopt a pet later as a child. Children with no siblings that owned a pet also show better-developed social skills and empathy than only children without pets. This phenomenon doesn’t just apply to young people, either. A study involving elderly owners of dogs and cats found that the elderly are able to perform more tasks around the house, when owning a pet as opposed to not, such as climbing the steps, kneeling down, and taking care of themselves.

Research has also shown that therapy dogs visiting individuals with autism or health disorders help alleviate stress and pain, and retirement home residents have shown to be less lonely and more social. Man’s best friend can certainly serve more populations beyond those they service and by simply being a member of a family, they may help us live healthier, happier lives. I have lived with dogs for most of my life, and with or without the possible health benefits, I plan to have dogs in my future. The bottom line is that whether you own pets for throughout your life or just see them in passing, they have a positive impact on your happiness and health.