Pet owners retain their cognitive abilities better with age than those without pets.
Having a pet may slow the rate of cognitive decline.
Older people who have pets such as a cat or a dog, especially for longer than five years, demonstrate better cognitive health.
This may put pet owners at a lower risk of developing dementia.
The benefit could be down to an increase in people’s physical activity as well as the stress-reducing effects of animals.
Dr Tiffany Braley, study co-author, said:
“Prior studies have suggested that the human-animal bond may have health benefits like decreasing blood pressure and stress.
Our results suggest pet ownership may also be protective against cognitive decline.”
The study included almost 1,400 older people, half of whom owned pets, with one-third owning pets over the long-term.
They were given a series of cognitive tests, including of their ability to remember words and do simple arithmetic.
The results revealed that pet owners retained their cognitive abilities better with age than people without pets.
The longer people had owned a pet, the greater the cognitive benefit.
Dr Braley said:
“As stress can negatively affect cognitive function, the potential stress-buffering effects of pet ownership could provide a plausible reason for our findings.
A companion animal can also increase physical activity, which could benefit cognitive health.
That said, more research is needed to confirm our results and identify underlying mechanisms for this association.”
Pets and mental health
Pets have been linked to all sorts of mental health benefits, both in the short- and long-term.
For example, ten minutes spent petting a cat or dog can significantly reduce stress.
And petting a dog for as little as three minutes increases levels of oxytocin, sometimes known as the ‘love hormone’.
In the longer term, people living with mental illness report a range of benefits from having pets:
- People reported finding pets calming and supportive.
- People felt their pets could tell when they were in trouble.
- Pets provided a distraction from upsetting symptoms of mental illness.
- Pets helped people stay active by providing a stimulus.
- Pets helped people maintain a positive identity.
- Owners felt their pets accepted them without judgement.
Having a dog as a childhood pet can even decrease the risk of developing schizophrenia later in life.
Emotional support animals can also be beneficial to people with mental health problems, another study finds.
Depression, anxiety and loneliness were reduced over a year in people who were given a cat or dog as a companion.
The study was presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 74th Annual Meeting (Shieu et al., 2022).
