Exposure to a domestic pet dog during the first few years of life may reduce the risk of developing schizophrenia in adulthood, according to a new study from the Johns Hopkins University Institute of Medicine.

Talking about the origins of the study, Robert Yolken, lead author of the paper, said: Severe mental illness and early childhood There is a strong association, and household pets are often creatures that children have close contact with, so we wanted to find an association between the two.

In their current study, Yolken and colleagues studied 18371 1,371 men and women between the ages of 65 and 65, including 396 with schizophrenia, 381 with bipolar disorder and 594 controls. Information recorded for each individual included age, gender, race/ethnicity, place of birth and highest level of parental education (measured by socioeconomic status).

Using a statistical model that generates hazard ratios, the research team graphed the relationship between age at first household contact with pets and psychiatric diagnosis. The team conducted analyses in four age groups: birth to 3, 4 to 5, 6 to 8, and 9 to 12.

Surprisingly, the findings showed that people who had been exposed to pet dogs before their 13th birthday were significantly less likely to be diagnosed with schizophrenia ( up to 24%). Children who were born with a pet dog at home, or who were exposed to pet dogs after birth but before age 3, had the lowest risk of developing schizophrenia.

Yolken said that if the study data were a reflection of current reality, there would be about 840,000 cases of schizophrenia (3.5 million, or 24%, of the 3.5 million people diagnosed with the disorder in the U.S.) ) can be prevented and prevented by keeping a dog as a pet.

However, in the results of the study, there was no link between cat ownership and schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.