Pet Dogs and Children's Health: Opportunities for Chronic Disease Prevention?
Pet Dogs and Children's Health: Opportunities for Chronic Disease Prevention?
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DOI：
10.5888/pcd12.150204
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发表时间：
2015-11-25
影响因子：
5.5
通讯作者：
Olson AL
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Gadomski AM;Scribani MB;Krupa N;Jenkins P;Nagykaldi Z;Olson AL
养宠物狗与成人健康状况之间的正相关关系已被记录在案；然而，很少有证据表明宠物狗对幼儿有好处。本研究调查了宠物狗与儿童健康体重和心理健康呈正相关的假设。本横断面研究收集了18个月以上儿科初级保健机构儿童的连续样本。该研究招募了643名儿童（平均年龄6.7岁）；96%是白人，45%是女性，56%是私人保险，58%在家里养宠物狗。在年度访问之前，4至10岁儿童的父母完成了达特screen，这是一种基于网络的综合健康风险筛查，使用电子平板电脑进行管理。筛查领域包括儿童体重指数（BMI）、身体活动、屏幕时间、心理健康和宠物相关问题。有宠物狗的儿童和没有宠物狗的儿童在BMI （P = 0.80）、屏幕时间2小时或更短（P = 0.99）或身体活动（P = 0.07）方面没有差异。与没有养狗的儿童（21%,P = 0.002）相比，有狗的儿童（12%）达到儿童焦虑及相关障碍筛查（scare -5）临床临界值3或以上的比例较低（12%）。养狗儿童的平均scare -5得分（1.13）低于不养狗儿童（1.40;P = 0.01）。在控制了几个协变量后，这种关系在多变量分析中保持不变。在家里养宠物狗与降低童年焦虑的可能性有关。未来的研究需要确定这种关系是否存在因果关系，如果存在因果关系，那么宠物狗是如何缓解儿童焦虑的。
Positive associations between having a pet dog and adult health outcomes have been documented; however, little evidence exists regarding the benefits of pet dogs for young children. This study investigates the hypothesis that pet dogs are positively associated with healthy weight and mental health among children. This cross-sectional study accrued a consecutive sample of children over 18 months in a pediatric primary care setting. The study enrolled 643 children (mean age, 6.7 years); 96% were white, 45% were female, 56% were privately insured, and 58% had pet dogs in the home. Before an annual visit, parents of children aged 4 to 10 years completed the DartScreen, a comprehensive Web-based health risk screener administered using an electronic tablet. The screener domains were child body mass index (BMI), physical activity, screen time, mental health, and pet-related questions. Children with and children without pet dogs did not differ in BMI (P = .80), screen time of 2 hours or less (P = 0.99), or physical activity (P = .07). A lower percentage of children with dogs (12%) met the clinical cut-off value of Screen for Child Anxiety and Related Disorders (SCARED-5) of 3 or more, compared with children without dogs (21%, P = .002). The mean SCARED-5 score was lower among children with dogs (1.13) compared with children without dogs (1.40; P = .01). This relationship was retained in multivariate analysis after controlling for several covariates. Having a pet dog in the home was associated with a decreased probability of childhood anxiety. Future studies need to establish whether this relationship is causal and, if so, how pet dogs alleviate childhood anxiety.