Some children are naturally stressed but with a dog in their corner, they seem to relax. We see it in their manner and in the way they pet a dog, unthinking, as they calmly look about. You can practically see the stress leave their bodies!
Researchers Reveal That Dogs Are Helping Children Better Manage Their Stress
From Science Daily:
“Our research shows that having a pet dog present when a child is undergoing a stressful experience lowers how much children feel stressed out,” Kertes said. “Children who had their pet dog with them reported feeling less stressed compared to having a parent for social support or having no social support.”Samples of saliva was also collected before and after the stressor to check children's cortisol levels, a biological marker of the body's stress response. Results showed that for kids who underwent the stressful experience with their pet dogs, children's cortisol level varied depending on the nature of the interaction of children and their pets.
“Children who actively solicited their dogs to come and be pet or stroked had lower cortisol levels compared to children who engaged their dogs less,” said Kertes, an assistant professor in the psychology department of UF's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. “When dogs hovered around or approached children on their own, however, children's cortisol tended to be higher.”
The children in the study were between 7 to 12 years old.”
Honestly, the only time we felt anxiety when it was regarding our dog was when he did something wrong and we recalled our Mother telling us: “If he does that one more time he is gone!” Mom was a softy so that wasn’t going to happen. But for a seven-year-old such a threat is enough to cause massive concern and sleepless nights!
Otherwise, yes. We can totally see why a dog could help a child manage stress. Science Daily says stats speak for themselves but we could have told one and all that a long time ago. Our dog, Max, is as good as Melatonin!
Pages: 1 2
