This anti-ageing treatment has four legs and nine lives

*Disclaimer* This post is not to be taken too seriously. It's just a bit of fun. 

My Cats Sid & Daisy (I warned you this was coming!) are my babies and they bring me so much joy. Sid is a cuddler but only at night, in the day he’s too cool for his mum. Daisy is sensitive soul; she likes the quiet confines of behind the sofa or bird watching through the windows. 
Having animals around makes a home complete and nothing sooths my soul more than listening to Sid purr away next to me in bed at night.

  

More & more research is being done into the benefits of pet ownership and studies show that interacting and playing with your pets can reduce stress and aid healing due to the chemical reaction it has in our bodies.

Petting your cat, dog, guinea pig, or whatever your furry (or scaly) friend of choice, has been proven to release the hormone oxytocin, which reduces stress, and decreases the production of the hormone cortisol, which your body releases when you are stressed.

So how is stress affecting my body, you may ask?

We know stress is bad for our health, and in particular our heart, but how does it effect the aging process? I won’t get too scientific on you but if you are interested see the journal published on plosone.org here to clue yourself up.

To cut to the chase, stress has been shown to impact our bodies on a cellular level therefore resulting in accelerated biological aging. Considering the beauty industry is quite largely based around the prospect of anti-ageing I thought it would be interesting to consider other ways in which we can help halt the ageing process that can also benefit our health and well-being in other ways. By reducing stress in our lives we reduce the risk of accelerated ageing.

The benefits of pet ownership are so numerous and not just for our physical health but our mental well-being also. ReachOut Australia has published an article on the health benefits of pet ownership, read it here 

Now I’m not telling you to head straight down to your local pet shop and make a panic pussy purchase, I’m just saying consider the benefits of a canine companion or a feline friend. If you are not in a position to own a pet yourself you can offer to walk your neighbors dog for them or volunteer at your local animal shelter for your daily dose of “me-ow-dication” (oh dear). Fostering and adoption are also great ways to introduce pets to your home and save an animals life, the rewards are endless.

So next time your feeling under the pump at work and watching those crows feet deepen and those eye bags droop another millimeter ditch the drugs, keep calm and pet your cat. Your reflection will thank you for it.

Thanks for reading