Having a Pet Can Keep Your Little One's Chance of Colds Away

     Early childhood development experts have long believed that children should have some kind of exposure to animals.  Gail F. Melson, PhD, professor emeritus of developmental studies at Purdue University, in Indiana, and the author of Why the Wild Things Are: Animals in the Lives of Children, explains that between 4 in 10 children start their life in a family that has animals, and as many as 90 percent of all children live with a pet at some point during their youth.

     Adopting a pet has numerous advantages for families, and the results of a recent study reveal that a family pet can help keep babies healthier.  The study, entitled, Respiratory Tract Illnesses During the First Year of Life:  Effect of Dog and Cat Contacts”, published in the current online edition of the medical journal Pediatrics, reveals that of the 397 children followed in Finland from pregnancy to 1 year whose families had either a dog or cat (or where around dogs and cats throughout their first year of life), were reported to be healthier and experience fewer respiratory infections than children without contact to domesticated animals. Researchers found that even though respiratory infections and infectious symptoms are frequent during the first year of a child’s life, children with early dog contact seem to have fewer respiratory infectious symptoms and diseases, especially ear infections, and needed a shorter course of antibiotics. Cat ownership also showed a protective effect on infants, but not as strong as dogs. The researchers concluded that animal contact may have an influence on the maturity of an infant’s immune system, which can lead to a shorter time period of infections, and help a child develop better resistance to respiratory infections during their childhood.

       If your family is looking to adopt a pet, please visit the following websites for further information:

http://www.aspca.org/

http://www.petfinder.com/index.html

http://www.animalleague.org/