Dogs – Good for Babies & their Parents

Go out and adopt that puppy right away. Turns out dogs are good for babies and their parents.

Back when my brother & I, strong dog advocates, were kids, we waged a long struggle against our mom, a major dog-aphobe in those days. Our dad was a dog-lover, too, but stayed mostly out of the fray. After almost of decade of relentless begging, we finally wore Mom down. Before long, Jinxie and then Nikki, may they rest in peace, were beloved members of the family. Indeed, I think Mom was as attached to them as anyone else.

If only baby bro & I had know what we know now, we could have persuaded Mom years earlier.

A remarkable new study out of Finland, in the preeminent pediatric journal shows that children who play with dogs are healthier than their lonely, dog-less peers. In particular, they suffer less from respiratory and ear infections.

Notably, having a cat was much less beneficial – sorry cat-lovers. First toxoplasmosis, now ear infections.

As our veteran parents know all too well, 7 such infections a season is not at all unusual in young children, so any respite from the constant sniffles is welcome.

This new result jives with previous work showing that children who grow up around dogs are less likely than the pup-less to develop asthma, allergies and eczema. Again, no such love from cats. I find all this totally awesome because while dogs are wonderful & lovable, asthma is a serious bummer.

Thus, the data are compelling that dogs love their children as much as children love them. But what about the parents, who, after all, bear the burden of dog chores?

Turns out, dogs are great for their health, too.

The American Heart Association just released a statement concluding that dog ownership was “probably associated” with a reduced risk of heart disease. Heart disease, of course, is the #1 killer of just about all populations over age 30, so that”s no small potatoes.

Noted the esteemed Dr Levine, “Several studies showed that dogs decreased the body’s reaction to stress, with a decrease in heart rate, blood pressure and adrenaline-like hormone release when a pet is present as opposed to when a pet is not present.” Obviously. Dogs are incredibly lovable. How can you be stressed around a playful pup?

“In one of the only randomized controlled studies included in the report, 48 stressed stockbrokers with hypertension were put on medication that lowered their blood pressure, and then researchers divided them into groups. Those in one group were told to adopt a dog or cat. Six months later, the researchers found that when the stockbrokers who had adopted pets were around their new companions, they were markedly calmer in the face of stressful events than the stockbrokers without pets.” – NYTimes

There you have it. Dogs – good for kids, good for parents.

Happy Mother”s Day to you all and especially to my mom! And thanks for finally letting us get a dog.

* Note: This was originally posted May 2013 from San Francisco and is now reposted after a technical upgrade in Oct 2017.