A Swedish study suggests that owning a dog is linked to a reduced risk for cardiovascular disease and death.

瑞典的一项研究表明，养狗和心血管疾病的患病与死亡风险降低有关。

Researchers used demographic data on 3.4 million Swedes ages 40 to 80. In Sweden, all dogs are registered with the Swedish Board of Agriculture and identified by number with an ear tattoo¹ or a subcutaneous chip.

研究人员使用了340万年龄在40至80岁的瑞典人的人口统计数据。在瑞典，所有犬只都在瑞典农业局(Swedish Board of Agriculture)注册，并以耳部刺青或皮下芯片证明身份。

Anyone with a record of cardiovascular disease before the 12-year study began was excluded, and the researchers controlled for age, sex, marital² status, income and other factors. Owning a dog was associated with a 20 percent lower risk of all-cause death and a 23 percent lower risk of death from cardiovascular disease. The study is in Scientific Reports.

本次为期12年的研究排除了在研究开始前已有心血管疾病记录的人，研究人员还控制了年龄、性别、婚姻状况、收入等其他因素。养狗与全死因死亡风险下降20%，以及心血管疾病死亡风险下降23%有关。该研究发表于《科学报告》(Scientific Reports)。

The effect was stronger with certain breeds, particularly pointers and retrievers. The senior author, Tove Fall, an epidemiologist at Uppsala University, suggested that this may reflect different kinds of owners: picture the owner of a Labrador retriever, and then one who has a Pomeranian.

一些特定品种影响更大，尤其是波音达猎犬和寻回犬。论文资深作者、乌普萨拉大学(Uppsala University)流行病学家托弗·福尔(Tove Fall)提出，这可能反映出了主人的不同类型：想象一下拉布拉多寻回犬的主人，再想想养博美犬的主人。

“Owning a dog is good motivation to get out and exercise and may provide some social support,” Dr. Fall said. But the study does not prove cause and effect, and in any case, “not everyone is up to owning a dog. Don’t give a dog to your grandmother in the hope that she’ll live longer.”

“养狗是出门锻炼的良好动力，也可能对社交有帮助，”福尔说。但该研究并未证明因果关系，并且不论如何，“不是每个人都想养狗的。别想着为了让你的祖母活得更久，就送她一只狗。”