Yeah, me and church are colliding. The 7th Day Adventist Church is holding a Community Health Fair today and they have graciously invited CAAWS to be a part of it. I thought it was a wonderful opportunity to let people know that dogs can help us be healthy. Below is one of the handouts I am using. It is from buzzle.com/articles and is very well put together.
I know dogs make my life complete. Wouldn't have it any other way! DiNozzo will accompany me to the Health Fair. (However, he should be an example of how your blood pressure can increase sometimes!) But his sad eyes should bring in a lot of people! He is a people magnet for sure! 
1. BLOOD PRESSURE - Dog owners have lower blood pressure. Several studies have shown that the simple act of stroking a dog can reduce blood pressure. More recent studies have found that these effects continue throughout the day when people are away from their dog as well. Dog owners cope with stress better and lowered blood pressure is a result of that relationship between a dog and his human. 2. CHOLESTEROL - Dog owners have lower cholesterol levels than non-dog owners. Studies done in Australia and England have shown that dog owners have lower cholesterol and triglycerides and are at less risk of developing heart disease or other cardiovascular problems. In fact, studies show that dog owners overall are healthier than the general population. This can be partially explained by regular walks with the family dog.
3. HAPPINESS - Dog owners are happier in general. Dog ownership has been shown to reduce loneliness and fight depression in their owners. When people are not lonely and depressed they are happier. Dogs can cause happiness in humans, in part, by causing the release of endorphins in the brain, which are natural anti-depressants produced by the human body. With this increase in mental health, quality of life is increased respectively. 4. LONGEVITY - Dog owners live longer. Because dog owners cope with stress better and do not suffer from depression as often; they are more likely to live longer. While being happy will not heal a person it can keep them from becoming ill in the first place. According to happiness studies experts the effect of happiness on longevity is comparable to that of smoking or not smoking. Pets provide companionship, healthy relationships and become topics of conversation which aid in social interactions with others. Dogs also increase self esteem and cause humans to feel more compassion for others. All of these factors combined have a dramatically positive effect on the day to day happiness of dog owners.
5. SURVIVAL RATES AFTER ILLNESS - Dog owners have higher survival rates after serious illness. Some studies have shown that heart attack patients with dogs are twice as likely to be alive one year after their heart attack than their no-dog owning peers. Some experts even believe that dogs affect survival rates to a greater extent than friends or family members. This is most likely explained by the patient’s desire to get better because they feel they need to in order to care for their dog.
The Lord is there in their eyes and behavior. HE sent them to help us cope with being human - HIS unconditional LOVE is also their unconditional LOVE. Dog is just GOD spelled backwards.
ReplyDeleteThis is so true! When my husband signed up for life insurance they were checking his blood pressure and our dog walked into the room. His blood pressure went down at that moment. Crazy because if you knew him you wouldn't think he could lower blood pressure. ha!
ReplyDeleteIt'd be nice if it was true, but most of that really sounds like bad statistics. Unless they assigned a group of people to get dogs, and a control group not to get dogs, and then followed them for ten years, the health/longevity claims are bogus. I would guess that fit and active people are more likely to acquire dogs.
ReplyDeleteThe lower blood pressure while petting the dog probably is true, but it still doesn't have enough context to be meaningful.