Dog and cat owners might be most likely to experience disrupted sleep compared to those who do not have family pets, research study recommends. Scientists in the United States likewise discovered having a dog was connected with higher chances of having a sleep condition, while cat owners had a greater opportunity of having leg jerks, likewise called agitated leg syndrome.
The group said its work, released in the journal Human-Animal Interactions, recommends pet ownership might have an unfavorable effect on sleep quality in specific scenarios. Lead author Dr Lauren Wisnieski, of Lincoln Memorial University, said: “Prior research studies on the association in between pet ownership and sleep quality and sleep conditions have actually differed outcomes.
“On the one hand, dogs and cats may be beneficial for an owner’s quality of sleep due to the social support that pets provide – pets offer a sense of security and companionship, which may result in improvements in levels of anxiety, stress and depression. Yet on the other hand, pets may disrupt their owners’ sleep.”
She said the goal of the research study was to learn “if there is an association between dog and cat ownership and sleep quality and sleep disorders – including consideration of aspects such as snoring, waking up during the night, needing pills to sleep and leg jerks”.
As part of the research study, Dr Wisnieski and her associates concentrated on information from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) – research studies developed to examine the health and dietary status of individuals in the United States – carried out in 2005-2006, including 5,499 people. The research study likewise took a look at elements connected with sleep quality such as feeling unrested, feeling drowsy, not getting adequate sleep, taking longer than 15 minutes to drop off to sleep, and getting less than 6 hours of sleep on average.
Dr Wisnieski said the most significant disparity in between cat and non-cat owners was the occurrence of leg jerks, with 28.2% of cat owners reporting leg jerks compared to 21.2% of non-cat owners. Meanwhile, when it comes to dog owners, 28.7% reported having actually problem sleeping compared to 21.6% of non-dog owners.
The occurrence of sleep conditions was 9.3% in dog owners and 6.4% in non-dog owners, Dr Wisnieski said. However, Dr Wisnieski included that it was unclear from the information whether family pet owners were co-sleeping with the animals.
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But she included: “Although the causal nature of pet ownership and sleep quality cannot be established with this study, this study provides further evidence for the negative impact of pets on sleep.”
She said more research study is required with randomised regulated trials to figure out the results family pets have on their owners’ sleep. But in the meantime, Dr Wisnieski encourages: “On an individual level, if you are having sleep issues, you may consider sleeping separately from your pet or restricting access to the bedroom to improve sleep.”
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