The research, led by Dr. Lauren Wisniewski from Lincoln Memorial University, USA, focused specifically on pet ownership in the USA and drew on data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) conducted in 2005-2006 Focused.
Assistant Professor of Public Health and Research and Affiliation Dr. Wisniewski found that having a dog was associated with a higher likelihood of having sleep disorders and having a cat had trouble sleeping, with a higher likelihood of having leg tremors.
While the causal nature of pet ownership on sleep quality and sleep disorders was unable to be established, the study results are consistent with previous studies that found pet ownership has a negative effect on sleep quality.
“Prior studies on the association between pet ownership and sleep quality and sleep disorders have had varying results,” Dr. Wisniewski said.
Is sleeping with pets good or bad?
“On the one hand, dogs and cats can be beneficial to an owner’s sleep quality because of the benefits pets provide — pets provide a sense of security and companionship, which can result in improved levels of anxiety, stress, and depression.” On the other hand, pets can disturb their owners’ sleep.
“The purpose of this cross-sectional study is to determine whether there is an association between dog and cat ownership and sleep quality and sleep disorders – including snoring, waking during the night, the need for pills to sleep, and leg Factors such as shock are to be considered.”
The research created multivariate logistic regression models that also included sleep quality factors such as feeling disturbed, feeling sleepy, not getting enough sleep, taking more than 15 minutes to fall asleep, and getting less than six hours of sleep on average.
Doctor. Wisniewski suggests that the difference in sleep quality and relationship to cat versus dog ownership may be because cats are more active at night.
In addition, she found that there were fewer differences in indicators of sleep quality between cat and non-cat owners than between dog and non-dog owners.
Dr. Wisniewski said, “If a causal relationship is established through further investigation, the results will have an impact on physician recommendations for treating patients with poor sleep quality.
“Additionally, educational resources could be developed to inform pet owners about the risks of sleep disruption and provide possible solutions, such as neutering the pet or restricting access to the bedroom at night.”
Finally, the study acknowledges that there may be potentially positive aspects to sleeping with a pet but the data from NHANES does not account for whether owners actually sleep with their dogs or cats.
“In the future, studies would benefit from measuring the human-animal bond, so that we can understand how its strength affects sleep quality,” Dr Wisniewski said.
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