Would Dog Owner Have Lower Heart Disease Risk?

Many studies have linked pet ownership to better physical and mental health for the past decades. Though these findings certainly encouraged pet owners, none of them could furnished conclusive proof.

A scientific statement published by the American Heart Association (AHA)  on June 10, 2013 in journal ‘Circulation’ reported that having a pet, a dog in particular, may lower the risk of heart disease. After reviewing all the available evidence, the panel of experts from AHA indicated that dog owners are more likely to exercise, have a better cholesterol profile, have lower blood pressure, be less vulnerable to the physical effects of stress, and be more likely to survive a heart attack.

The panel of experts, however, emphasized that while pet adoption may be associated with some future reduction in cardiovascular disease (CVD), the primary purpose of doing that should not be to achieve a reduction in CVD risk. They also stressed that by merely adopting a pet without a plan of regular aerobic activity (such as walking a dog) and implementation of other primary and secondary cardiovascular preventive measures is not a sound or advisable strategy for reduction in CVD risk. Further research of pet ownership and CVD risk is required, and should include studies of risk factor modification, primary prevention, and pet acquisition as part of a strategy of secondary risk reduction.

New findings have emerged since then. According to a recent study that was published online November 17, 2017 in the journal ‘Scientific Reports’, dog owners who lived alone were 11 percent less likely to die of heart disease and a third less likely to die from any cause, compared with those who lived alone and did not have a dog. The researchers from Uppsala University in Sweden tracked for 12 years 3,432,153 Swedes, who were middle-aged and older, and were free of heart disease at the onset of the study.

But the researchers admitted that their observational study cannot provide evidence for a causal effect of dog ownership on CVD or mortality, though there might be direct effects of dog ownership on health outcomes. For instance, psychosocial stress factors, such as social isolation, depression and loneliness were all reportedly lower in dog owners. These factors have been linked to increased risk of coronary heart disease, cardiovascular death and all-cause mortality. Moreover, it has consistently been shown that dog owners achieve more physical activity and spend more time engaged in outdoor activities.

Owning a dog seems to help people already have heart disease. A 1995 study followed 369 people with CVD and found that a year later, those who owned a dog were 4 times more likely to be alive than those who did not own a dog. Cats, on the other hand, did not improve their owners’ odds of survival.

Dog may help heart disease patients in other ways, too. Please read more on an article titled ‘The Role of Medical Alert and Medical Response Dogs in Monitoring Heart Disease’.

Heart Disease Prevention With Pets!

Pets have been thought to be human’s best friends. For nearly 25 years, researchers have shown that living with pets can provide certain health benefits to the pet owners.

For instance, pets can help lessen anxiety, reduce stress, depression and loneliness. Several studies also reported that heart attack patients who have pets survive longer than those without, and male pet owners have less sign of heart disease than non-owners.

A scientific statements written by American Heart Association (AHA) indicated that owning a pet, particularly dog, might help decrease a person's heart disease risk and is associated with lower levels of obesity, blood pressure and cholesterol.

The statement was published online on May 9, 2013 in journal ‘Circulation’, after reviewing previous studies of the influence of pets. The researchers also pointed out that of all pets, dogs appear most likely to positively influence the level of human physical activity.

Dog owners engage in more physical activity and walking, and are more likely to achieve the recommended level of physical activity than non-owners of dogs. An online survey of 5,253 Japanese adults, quoted in the statement, revealed that dog owners engaged in significantly more walking and physical activity than non-owners, and were 54 percent more likely to achieve the recommended level of physical activity.

While there is a substantial body of data suggesting pet ownership is linked to a reduction in cardiovascular disease risk factors and increased survival in individuals with established cardiovascular disease, these studies could not prove owning a pet can directly cause a reduction in heart disease risk.

Hence, people should not simply adopt, rescue or buy a pet solely for the purpose of reducing cardiovascular disease. The researchers stressed that further research, including better quality studies, should be carried out to more definitively find out whether the act of adopting or acquiring a pet could lead to a lower risk in getting cardiovascular disease in those with pre-existing disease.

According to the American Pet Product Association 2011-2012 National Pet Owners Survey, about 78.2 million people in the United States own a dog and 86.4 million have a cat. However, based on the report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), pet owners are still just as likely to be overweight as people without pets.

Heart disease prevention cannot be achieved by just owning a pet. It is possible that taking care of a pet requires its owner to get more exercise that can lower stress, weight and blood pressure, and benefits the heart. If a pet owner still sits on the couch and eats whatever they want, and smoke and does not control the blood pressure, then there is no benefit at all.