Why teens who kiss their dogs are happier, according to science

Teenagers who kiss their dog or are occasionally licked by their pet are happier, a study has found.

Adolescents who grow up in a home with a pet dog have previously been found to have better mental health than those who do not. Now, research has found that teenagers in homes with a dog have a specific gut bacteria constitution, known as the microbiome, which boosts mental wellbeing.

A lick from a dog can expose teenagers to bacteria which then alters their microbiome. Those in the study were found to have better mental health.Credit: Getty Images

Gut bacteria samples from 345 teenagers were analysed and the participants also underwent psychological assessment. Some 96 owned dogs while 247 did not. Two did not have enough data.

Tests showed children with dogs had healthier scores and their microbiome was rich in certain bacteria.

When the dog-influenced bacteria were injected into mice in a lab, the rodents became more social and engaged more with other mice.

This increase in social interaction would lead to better relationships with friends and family, the scientists said.

‘Dog ownership alters the gut’

“Raising dogs has beneficial effects, especially for adolescents, and these effects may be mediated through symbiosis with microorganisms,” said study author Professor Takefumi Kikusui, of Azabu University in Japan.

“Adolescent children who keep dogs exhibit higher mental wellbeing, and we also found that dog ownership alters the gut microbiota.

“Since the gut microbiota influences behaviour through the gut-brain axis, we conducted this experiment.”

The researchers concluded that microbiome “may be partly involved in improving the wellbeing of adolescents living with dogs”.

“We recently revealed that small numbers of bacteria can be transferred between owners and their dogs, and vice versa,” the scientists wrote in their study, published in iScience.

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“In humans, kissing facilitates the transfer of oral microbiota.

“Since kissing and licking are common in human-dog interactions, it is speculated that these interactions may alter the oral and gut microbiota of owners, potentially influencing gut-brain function.”

Kikusui said: “The most interesting finding from this study is that bacteria promoting prosociality, or empathy, were discovered in the microbiomes of adolescent children who keep dogs.

“The implication is that the benefits of dog ownership include providing a sense of security through interaction, but I believe it also holds value in its potential to alter the symbiotic microbial community.”

The Telegraph, London

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