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Latest Mental Health News<\/h3>\n
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WEDNESDAY, July 1, 2020 (HealthDay News)<\/p>\n
Many soldiers experience traumas on the battlefield that leave them emotionally wounded, but something as simple as walking<\/a> a dog might bring these veterans desperately needed psychic relief.<\/p>\n So suggests a new study where researchers compared how four weeks of walking<\/a> with a shelter dog or with another person affected three biomarkers of stress<\/a> in male and female veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder<\/a> (PTSD<\/a>).<\/p>\n The three biomarkers were: heart<\/a> rate variability; cortisol (a “stress<\/a>” hormone); and the enzyme alpha-amylase. The strongest indication that walking with a dog reduced stress<\/a> came from heart<\/a> rate variability findings.<\/p>\n “Based on heart rate variability, our study provides evidence that walking with a shelter dog may benefit veterans with higher symptoms of post-traumatic stress<\/a>. Severity of symptoms and perceived stress<\/a> tended to decrease more after walks with a dog than walks with a human,” said study author Cheryl Krause-Parello. She is director of Canines Providing Assistance to Wounded Warriors and a professor in Florida Atlantic University’s School of Nursing<\/a>.<\/p>\n Heart rate variability was measured before, during and for 30 minutes after walking.<\/p>\n The veterans’ responses to walking with a dog or another person were different, depending on their PTSD<\/a> symptom severity.<\/p>\n Walking with another person did not change stress levels as measured with cortisol in those with high PTSD<\/a> symptom severity, while walking with a dog or another person led to decreases in cortisol among those with low PTSD<\/a> symptom severity.<\/p>\n For veterans with high PTSD symptom severity, walking with a dog did not change stress levels as indicated by alpha amylase, but walking with a person led to increased stress. For those with lower PTSD symptom severity, alpha amylase did not change significantly with either type of walk.<\/p>\n “Our findings emphasize the need for more research to determine if this form of human-animal interaction is beneficial to veterans with PTSD and to help us identify the optimal level of interaction that will be most impactful for them,” Krause-Parello said in a university news release.<\/p>\n The study was published recently in the journal Anthrozo\u00f6s<\/i>.<\/p>\n Of the more than 21 million veterans in the United States, about 20% have PTSD.<\/p>\n “Considering the large number and availability of shelter dogs<\/a> in the United States, it really makes sense to consider the potential for these dogs<\/a> to be involved in a unique intervention that combines the benefits of human-animal interaction with the benefits of altruistic action like volunteerism,” said study co-author Erika Friedmann, a professor and associate dean for research at the University of Maryland School of Nursing<\/a>.<\/p>\n — Robert Preidt<\/p>\n![\"MedicalNews\"](\"https:\/\/images.medicinenet.com\/images\/HealthDay\/healthday.png\")
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