Stress Reduction: Pets Help College Students, Study Proves

Stress reduction is possible in college students thanks to their pets. A study has proved how just ten minutes of interaction with dogs or cats could reduce the cortisol levels in students. 

Stressful college life

To help relieve stress from students, many universities have installed the "Pet Your Stress Away" program. They understand that college life is stressful due to papers, classes, and exams. Apart from that, students also have to deal with work, bills, and many other pressures in life as they become adults. 

Ten minutes is enough to relieve stress

The Washington State University research team revealed that the programs improve the students' moods. Apart from that, pets have stress-relieving physiological benefits. An associate professor at the WSU's Department of Human Development, Patricia Pendry said that just ten minutes could have a big impact. 

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(Photo: unsplash/BRUNO EMMANUELLE)

She noted that students who had contact with dogs and cats have reduced stress. They found that the subjects had a significantly reduced cortisol, the known major stress hormone. It is the first study that shows a decrease in the stress hormone levels in a real-life intervention. 

The research team randomly divided 249 college students into four groups. They let the first group have close contact with dogs or cats for ten minutes. The students could play, pet, and hang out with the animals. The second group watches people pet the animals as they wait in line for their turn to pet. 

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The research team let the third group watch a slideshow of the pets during the intervention. The fourth group was waitlisted. For ten minutes, the students waited in line without phones or any other stimuli. The team only informed them that they soon will have animal interaction. 

They took saliva samples from each subject starting in the morning after waking up. They found that those who had direct interaction with pets had lower levels of stress hormones. The first group had lower stress hormones than the rest of the groups. It is evident in students with both low and high levels of cortisol at the start of the study. 

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(Photo: unsplash/Tran Mau Tri Tam)

Physical and mental health benefits

Pendry explained that they knew that students love playing with animals. She said that the youngsters have more positive emotions as a result. They found that it significantly benefits both the physical and mental health of the students. 

Although their study only had a small sample size, the results strongly complement previous research that both humans and animals benefit from the interaction.

In 2017, a study revealed that a 15-minute pet therapy session helped lower students' blood pressure. They also noticed that their subjects' stress levels decreased. 

The WSU team advised that future research should focus on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. It is considered as one of the most sensitive stress systems. The research team believes that by having contact with pets could control the system by producing more oxytocin.