Getting a dog may inspire people to exercise more

2/16/2012

Employee wellness programs work to encourage staff to get more physical activity and stay healthy. This is important for everyone, but especially pregnant workers who may be at risk of gestational diabetes and other complications if they don't get enough exercise.

Recently, scientists from the University of Liverpool conducted a study on more than 11,000 pregnant women to determine what factors may influence this population to get regular exercise. The researchers found that study participants who owned dogs were 50 percent more likely to get 30 minutes of brisk walking each day, which is the recommended amount of exercise for pregnant women.

According to the researchers, these findings could have implications beyond just pregnancy, since the results may mean that owning a dog promotes more physical activity in the general population as well. The scientists are planning more studies to determine the effects of having a dog on exercise patterns.

"We now need to investigate why some people do not take up the health enhancing opportunity to walk their dogs regularly, and what barriers and motivators there are to walking. We also need to find out how factors such as the type of dog many affect the intensity of physical activity," said researcher Carri Westgarth, Ph.D.

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