Animal Lovers Alert! Though at some level, we knew that pets can make life easy, now we have research that proves that pets are good for physical as well as emotional well-being. Having a pet is a stress buster and we know very well how much we need to bust that stress during menopause.
Menopause is the time in a woman’s life when a lot changes. These changes may be physical like weight gain, fatigue, etc as well as mentals like stress, mood swings, and depression. It's not easy going through all these changes but pets make them easier, there is a sense of constant belongingness that remains with these little furry friends.
Stress and anxiety come with menopause as the estrogen levels decline and along with it comes the dreaded hot flashes. Research shows that hot flashes are linked with stress and anxiety. The Journal of the North American Menopause Society states that “women with moderate anxiety were nearly three times more likely to report hot flashes and women with high anxiety were nearly five times more likely to report hot flashes.”
So apart from the lifestyle changes, supplements like Remifemin and exercise have now proven that pets help reduce hot flashes as they lower stress levels.
Pets, not only lower stress but interestingly pet owners may draw more support from their furry friends, as opposed to a friend or even their spouse. According to an article, this is actually true because animals don’t judge, they don’t dominate. Our pets are there to only provide us with unending companionship and unconditional love.
Menopause quite annoyingly has a tendency of complicating existing conditions like Diabetes. It is quite common for women to have fluctuating insulin levels due to hormonal fluctuations. Due to this instability in levels, it is very important to monitor insulin levels in the body. Believe it or not, there is a canine solution to this! There are diabetes assist dogs, these dogs are trained to sense from the smell in the air for a specific scent in the human breath that indicates low blood sugar levels. The trained dog then alerts their owners by either nudging or pawing in a significant way.
Is it me, or do our pets seem to be the solution to all our menopause problems! Well not quite, having a pet can go either way. That's because many women in menopause develop allergies and these allergies may be from the furry friend. However, there are ways in which we can pick our pets and lessen the triggers of those allergies. Here are a few things to keep in mind while getting a new furry family member
Choose hypoallergenic pets
Choose low-shedding pets
Change pet bedding daily
Keep your bedrooms pet free
Proper ventilation is key
Going the extra mile to keep a pet in your life will pay off later. Of course, with the immediate companionship that a pet provides, and all of the benefits we’ve discussed this far, there’s also the possibility that a pet can be a real ally later in life. So let's grow into menopause with the unconditional love of our paw-tastic companions.
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