Having A Pet In Bed With You May Actually Help You Sleep Better, Study Finds

Having a pet in bеd with you may actually help you sleep better, study finds.

The study discovered nearly half of pet owners reported they felt more rested with their animal in their bedroom than without.

Having a cat or dog in bеd with you as you drop off may actually help you have a good nights sleep, scientists have found.

The study discovered nearly half of pet owners reported they felt more rested with their animal in their bedroom than without.

The Mayo Sleep Clinic in Arizona interviewed 150 participants, 49 per cent of whom owned pets.

While 20 per cent of owners said sometimes animals could interrupt their sleep with ‘wandering’, ‘snoring’ or ‘whimpering’, 41 per cent said it was an advantage.

Lois Krahn, who authored the study Are Animals a Problem in the Bedroom? said: “People sleeping alone, not always single but sometimes with a partner who travels or works some nights, more often spoke of the beneficial companionship stemming from a pet in the bedroom or on the bеd.

Read more : Pet-loving couple creates enormous bеd so they can sleep with 5 cats and 2 dogs

“Because humans spend considerable time sleeping, a pet owner’s desire to have animals close at night is understandable. The value of these experiences, although poorly understood, cannot be dismissed because sleep is dependent on a state of physical and mental relaxation.”

The study authors said some pets disturbed their owners by fidgeting, making noise or needing to use the toilet.

But owners whose pets slept soundly tended to report only benefits from having them in bed such as security, companionship or relaxation that helped them sleep.

The study authors said: “A single 64-year-old woman commented that she felt more content when her small dog slept under the covers near her feet.

One married woman described her 2 small dogs as ‘bed warmers.’

“One 50-year-old woman did ‘not mind when my lovely cat’ slept on her chest and another described her cat as ‘soothing.’ Patients volunteered that they deliberately acquired a dog or cat to help them relax.”

The study authors said more research needed to be done but it suggested getting a pet might be a good idea for people suffering sleep problems.

The said: “Health care professionals working with patients with sleep concerns should inquire about the home sleep environment, and companion animals specifically, to help them find solutions and optimise their sleep.”

Source: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/technology-science/science/having-pet-bed-you-actually-6980352