NPR

Dog Owners Have Lower Risk Of Cardiovascular Disease, Swedish Data Suggest

Researchers looked at hospital visits in Sweden's public health care system and checked them against dog registration records. They found dog owners had lower rates of heart disease.
Source: Robyn Beck

Dogs shower their owners with affection and demand walks on a regular basis. And according to medical researchers, a corresponding link between dog ownership and heart health — previously called "probable" by experts — is supported by Swedish data.

An examination of Sweden's national records — spanning more than 3.4 million people and 12 years — found

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from NPR

NPR6 min read
Shipbuilders Harness The Wind To Clean Up Global Shipping
Container ships use heavy fuel oil called bunker fuel. They’re more efficient than trains, trucks and planes. But bunker fuel is highly polluting, and container ships produce about 3% of the world’s emissions.
NPR4 min read
How Do You Build Without Over Polluting? That's The Challenge Of New Catan Board Game
A new version of the popular board game Catan aims to make players wrestle with a 21st-century problem: How do you develop and expand without overly polluting the planet?
NPR4 min readCrime & Violence
Heated Arguments At The Supreme Court In Newest Abortion Case
At issue is a clash between federal and state law about how pregnant women must be treated in the emergency room.

Related Books & Audiobooks