Dog ownership during adolescence alters the microbiota and improves mental health.

ABSTRACT: Adolescents who own dogs have higher well-being than those who do not; however, it is unclear what the underlying mechanism explains how dog ownership affects adolescents' well-being. As dog ownership influences the composition of the microbiota in the home environment, we examined the microbiome of dog-owning adolescents and analyzed associations with mental health and behavior in the teenage cohort participants (n = 345). Our findings reveal that dog-owning adolescents showed fewer problems with psychological scores, and some commensals were correlated with adolescents' psychological scores. Mice treated with the microbiota of dog-owning adolescents showed a higher social approach to a trapped cagemate. An association analysis was conducted between the adolescents' psychological s

SUBMITTER: Miyauchi E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12767183 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature