section_path: Roles with humans/Health benefits
section_name: Health benefits
paragraph_text: Health benefits
  
  The scientific evidence is mixed as to whether a dog's companionship can enhance human physical and psychological well-being. Studies suggest that there are benefits to physical health and psychological well-being, but they have been criticized for being "poorly controlled". One study states that "the health of elderly people is related to their health habits and social supports but not to their ownership of, or attachment to, a companion animal". Earlier studies have shown that pet-dog or -cat guardians make fewer hospital visits and are less likely to be on medication for heart problems and sleeping difficulties than non-guardians. People with pet dogs took considerably more physical exercise than those with cats or those without pets; these effects are relatively long-term. Pet guardianship has also been associated with increased survival in cases of coronary artery disease. Human guardians are significantly less likely to die within one year of an acute myocardial infarction than those who do not own dogs. Studies have found a small to moderate correlation between dog-ownership and increased adult physical-activity levels.
  
  A 2005 paper states:
  
  recent research has failed to support earlier findings that pet ownership is associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, a reduced use of general practitioner services, or any psychological or physical benefits on health for community dwelling older people. Research has, however, pointed to significantly less absenteeism from school through sickness among children who live with pets.
  
  Health benefits of dogs can result from contact with dogs in general, not solely from having dogs as pets. For example, when in a pet dog's presence, people show reductions in cardiovascular, behavioral, and psychological indicators of anxiety, and are exposed to immune-stimulating microorganisms, which can protect against allergies and autoimmune diseases (according to the hygiene hypothesis). Other benefits include dogs as social support.
  
  One study indicated that wheelchair-users experience more positive social interactions with strangers when accompanied by a dog than when they are not. In 2015, a study found that pet owners were significantly more likely to get to know people in their neighborhood than non-pet owners. In one study, new guardians reported a significant reduction in minor health problems during the first month following pet acquisition, which was sustained through the 10-month study.
  
  Using dogs and other animals as a part of therapy dates back to the late-18th century, when animals were introduced into mental institutions to help socialize patients with mental disorders. Animal-assisted intervention research has shown that animal-assisted therapy with a dog can increase smiling and laughing among people with Alzheimer's disease. One study demonstrated that children with ADHD and conduct disorders who participated in an education program with dogs and other animals showed increased attendance, knowledge, and skill-objectives and decreased antisocial and violent behavior compared with those not in an animal-assisted program.