Could pets help us to reduce stress-related blood pressure?

The efficacy of antihypertensives in lowering resting blood pressure is unquestionable but these drugs have little effect on blood pressure responses to physical or mental stressors.

Previous studies show that social support provided by people is beneficial to human health and there are already studies underway investigating the positive effects of pet ownership in elderly patients and in people with AIDs or cardiovascular conditions.

This study was conducted to evaluate whether having a dog or a cat could reduce heart rate, blood pressure and renin responses to physiological stress in humans. The sample consisted of 48 stockbrokers (professionals working in high-stress roles). All of them were living alone and receiving lisinopril therapy. They were split into two groups – a group with pets and a control group – with their stress levels assessed at the time they started with the drug therapy and six months later. Data were collected both during visits to their physician and at the participants’ homes. For members of the pet owner group, the second assessment was performed while they were with their pets.

During the assessments, participants were asked to complete stressful tasks, including speaking and solving arithmetic problems. A significant task performance improvement was reported in the pet owners’ group, which suggests that cognitive progress occurred when lisinopril was combined with the presence of pets. Responses to mental stress were also lower among the pet owner group.

The importance of medication in treating hypertensive patients is indisputable and cannot be replaced by pet ownership. Nonetheless, this study confirms that that pets can enrich human lives and provide health benefits, particularly in those individuals who like animals and have few social contacts.

Karen Allen, Barbara E. Shykoff, and Joseph L. IzzoJr. Pet Ownership, but Not ACE Inhibitor Therapy, Blunts Home Blood Pressure Responses to Mental Stress. Hypertension. 2001;38:815–820. https://doi.org/10.1161/hyp.38.4.815