当您阅读本文时，是否有一个毛茸茸的朋友curl缩在您旁边的沙发上，还是坐在脚下？赔率很好 - 根据美国预防动物虐待协会进行的全国性民意调查（ASPCA）发现大流行期间有2300万美国家庭获得了一只宠物。一旦您考虑了已经是宠物主人的数千万美国人，据估计，有70％的美国家庭有宠物，根据美国宠物产品协会的2021 - 2022年国家宠物主人调查。（如果这个数字听起来令人震惊，请想一想还有多少人申请采用宠物，只是在等待一个好消息，即Spot或Fido是他们带回家的好消息！）
当然，拥有一只宠物承担着巨大的责任，但是研究表明，它也可能带来重大的健康益处。但是，请记住，关于宠物对人类健康的影响的绝大多数研究是观察性的，这意味着它们暗示了这两个因素之间的联系，而不是因果关系。
继续阅读六种宠物的方式，可以帮助您保持更健康和更快乐。
1.宠物促进社会联系
Having a dog gets you outside, where you’ll naturally find yourself interacting and engaging with your community on a regular basis. For example, pets can function as social icebreakers, says南希·吉（Nancy R. Gee），博士，在里士满的弗吉尼亚联邦大学的精神病学教授和比尔·巴拉班人类动物互动主席。Gee博士说：“对于许多人来说，宠物在社区和社区中充当社会资本。”“他们促成了恩惠的交流并鼓励公民参与。”
例如，这对于性格内向的人或与新朋友进行对话很难的人特别有意义。吉指2019 market research surveythat found that more than half (54 percent) of respondents said their pet helps them connect with other people. “Other observational studies have found that walking with a dog in public increases how often we receive social interactions and social acknowledgments, such as friendly glances and smiles,” says Gee.
2. Pet Ownership Is Linked to Lower Blood Pressure
虽然周围有宠物并没有给您提供不良饮食或承担健康风险的许可，但好消息是，宠物的所有权与改善有关心脏健康。One past study检查了宠物所有权和心血管反应性，这是一个潜在的标记心脏病风险并发现宠物的人的心率和血压较低。这项研究表明，在压力期间，宠物主人的心率和血压升高也较小，这些增加的增长更快地恢复正常，这是对狗和猫主人的分析。
Another randomized controlled study, this one出版于高血压2018年4月，表明宠物所有权与降低血压对精神压力的反应有关。
3.狗可以帮助增强您的体育锻炼
狗主人知道演习。从您醒来的那一刻起，您必须参加一件关键的事情：带狗出去做他的生意。简而言之，您的承诺迫使您移动身体。
“尽管医生的建议，但许多否则几乎没有做任何体育锻炼的所有者，最终仅通过关心，玩耍和walking狗而获得了相当多的运动。”马克·菲尔斯坦（Mark Fierstein），医学博士，纽约市NYU Langone Health的内科专家。（他补充说，不过，猫主也不能这样说。）
根据您的停车，每周五天，每天只有30分钟的狗，可以帮助您接近到达卫生与公共服务部的建议of at least 150 minutes of exercise each week.
A 2019 survey of a community in the United Kingdom,2019年4月出版科学报告，，，，注意到，狗主人至少进行150分钟的锻炼可能性是非狗主人的四倍。和a July 2017 research report在里面流行病学与社区健康杂志also notes that participants who walked dogs were consistently more active than participants who didn’t own dogs.
4. Pets May Help Prevent Loneliness
Even if you’re coupled up or living with a houseful of roommates, loneliness can creep in — but having a pet can help, says Dr. Fierstein, particularly for people who live alone. For example, if you work remotely, you know it can be soothing to have your dog or cat curled up next to you while you type away on your laptop. This companionship can be beneficial to your mental health, says Gee.
There’s a lack of robust scientific research available on the subject, but anecdotally, at least, it seems pet owners are quick to attribute a lack of loneliness to their furry companion. That said, a study published in December 2021 inPLOS ONEexamined psychological markers in dog owners and non–dog owners during the2019冠状病毒病大流行通过经过验证的在线调查。研究人员发现，狗主人报告说，他们拥有更多的社会支持（和更少的孤独），他们认为这要归功于他们的宠物。据报道他们也经历了更少的symptoms of depression尽管没有发现焦虑或整体幸福分数差异，但他们比非狗的所有者没有。
And according to a 2019 report by the人类动物邦德研究所和火星佩特卡雷，80％的宠物主人说他们的宠物使他们感到不那么孤独。
瑞奇·汤普森（Ricky Thompson），在佛罗里达州杰克逊维尔的Thriveworks的持牌心理健康顾问指出，一项研究于2020年10月发表在衰老与心理健康that suggests dog ownership is associated with fewer feelings of isolation than cat ownership, to support this idea. But ultimately, when deciding which kind of furry creature is best, Thompson says, “it really comes down to personal preferences and what type of animal an individual is more comfortable with.”
5.抚摸你的四足朋友提升良好的荷尔蒙
Have you ever stopped to think about why you stroke your pet, scratch your dog’s ears, or pet your cat’s furry belly? Sure, your pet may enjoy having their owner lavish them with attention — but some research suggests there’s a hormonal benefit for the person doing the petting, too. For example, one small study,published in October 2017 in心理学领域，发现抚摸狗与较高的感觉良好的激素有关催产素and lower levels of stress hormone cortisol.Another small past study与新狗配对的参与者中，Fido的存在与减少有关皮质醇水平在压力测试in an unfamiliar setting.
菲尔斯坦说，抚摸你蓬松的伴侣可能会增加催产素和endorphinproduction, which, he says, can help decrease feelings of stress, anxiety, depression, loneliness, and social isolation.
6.宠物可以帮助促进心理健康
菲尔斯坦说：“宠物建立了社交和情感联系，这会积极影响情绪和整体心理健康。”他补充说，正如观察性研究表明，宠物可以成为患有心理健康状况的人们的支持。
Research seems to support the idea that pets may bolster mental health. One large review,published in February 2018 inBMC Psychiatry，检查了17项关于患有精神健康状况的人的宠物所有权进行的研究。评论表明，拥有宠物对该群体有多种潜在的好处 - 例如，狗的拥有者对与之相处的退伍军人有益post-traumatic stress disorder, and pet ownership was more generally linked with improved emotional stability. Owning a pet was also associated with an increased sense of meaning and purpose.
