CAT scans and biopsies are useful for detecting cancer, and blood tests can confirm diabetes. But researchers have found a highly accurate, simple and more adorable tool for sniffing out diseases: dogs.<\/p>\n
Yes, woman\u2019s best friend has learned to detect colorectal, skin, bladder, lung, breast and ovarian cancers by smell, according to scientific studies conducted over the past decade. In many cases, they\u2019re more accurate, deliver faster results and are cheaper than lab tests.<\/p>\n
Service dog training now includes skills such as alerting diabetics to dangerous drops in blood sugar levels. They can help autistic kids socialize and veterans cope with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They can also notify a deaf mom when her baby is crying.<\/p>\n
\u201cDogs are pack animals, programmed to please,\u201d says Rebecca Johnson, Ph.D., R.N., associate professor at the University of Missouri\u2019s College of Veterinary Medicine and director of the Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction. \u201cThey\u2019re trained to do extraordinary things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canines aren\u2019t the only service animals. Miniature horses guide the blind, and our simian relatives do more than just monkey around: They\u2019re improving life for those with limited mobility.<\/p>\n
Here are the top health conditions for which animals are used, and how they get their jobs done.<\/p>\n
Animal-Assisted Therapy #1: Cancer detection
Dogs, with their extraordinary sense of smell \u2013 about a million times better than a human\u2019s \u2013 can identify chemicals diluted to a few parts per trillion. Their potential to \u201cdiagnose\u201d cancer was first recognized in 1989, when a pet dog alerted its owner to a melanoma (skin cancer) by repeatedly sniffing a skin sore.<\/p>\n
Since 2001, as reported in numerous respected medical journals, dogs have been trained to detect a variety of cancers.<\/p>\n
Lung and breast cancer: In 2006, research dogs detected these with an astonishing 88%-97% accuracy, according to a study led by the Pine Street Foundation, a cancer research and education group in San Anselmo, Calif., and the Polish Academy of Sciences.<\/p>\n
The dogs sniffed the breath of participants who had recently been diagnosed with cancer through a biopsy, mammogram or CAT scan. They also smelled cancer-free control patients. Amazingly, they were able to identify those with lung and breast cancer, both in early and late stages of the disease.<\/p>\n
Colorectal and prostate cancer: Marine, a specially trained black Labrador retriever, detected colorectal cancer 91% of the time when sniffing human breath and stool samples, according to a study published in the British journal Gut in January 2011.<\/p>\n
The uncanny canine also clocked a 90% detection rate for prostate cancer when smelling urine samples, another study found.<\/p>\n
Bladder cancer: Drawing on dogs\u2019 instinctual sniffing of urine, a British team of researchers in 2004 trained six dogs to identify the urine of patients with bladder cancer, according to a report in the journal Nature. The cancer cells apparently release molecules with a special odor.<\/p>\n
When the dogs were trained to discriminate between cancer patients and those with benign bladder conditions, their accuracy rate was about 40%.<\/p>\n
Studies continue, but canine cancer detection isn\u2019t yet available to the public. And don\u2019t try it with Fido at home. Dogs need special training for this work, experts say.<\/p>\n
Animal-Assisted Therapy #2: Diabetes intervention
Imagine you\u2019re watching TV and your blood-sugar level plunges well below 70 mg\/dL (80-100 mg is ideal). You feel nervous, fuzzy-headed and weak \u2013 but don\u2019t realize that hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, has set in. Left untreated, the condition can lead to a seizure or coma.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, your yellow Lab nudges you repeatedly, urging you to pay attention. What\u2019s up?<\/p>\n
\u201cI know my blood sugar\u2019s low and I need something with sugar fast,\u201d says Pebbles Miller, 45, a diabetic and paramedical examiner. She both volunteers for and uses the services of Dogs4Diabetics, a nonprofit organization in San Anselmo, which provides service dog training for people with insulin-dependent diabetes.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy dog, Fairmont, is right about my hypoglycemia 90% of the time,\u201d Miller says. \u201cI\u2019m sure he\u2019s saved my life several times.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2008, researchers from Queen\u2019s University in Belfast surveyed 212 dog owners with type 1 diabetes. About 65% of them said their dogs had reacted to at least one hypoglycemic episode. A third said their dogs had reacted to more than 10 events.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn almost every training class, we have a dog that alerts a visitor who doesn\u2019t know they\u2019re diabetic,\u201d says Dogs4Diabetics executive director Susan Millhollon. \u201cIt usually turns out they are.\u201d<\/p>\n
Animal-Assisted Therapy #3: Epilepsy notification
Researchers believe some dogs are able to sense when someone is about to have an epileptic seizure \u2013 either through electromagnetic changes, the scent of certain body chemicals or subtle neuromuscular cues, says the University of Missouri\u2019s Johnson.<\/p>\n
Johnson witnessed such a canine alert at a dog-training session. One of the dogs, which had been taught to detect low blood sugar, suddenly became agitated and nudged the hand of a nearby woman, trying to get her attention. Seconds later, the woman had an epileptic seizure, Johnson says.<\/p>\n
A pre-seizure warning could give someone with epilepsy enough time to take medication or to get into a safe position, Johnson says.<\/p>\n
Some physicians are skeptical of a dog\u2019s ability to warn of seizures, but at the very least, service dog training can teach them to stay beside an epileptic person during an event or press a button on a phone programmed to dial 911.<\/p>\n
Animal-Assisted Therapy #4: Autism ambassadors
Twenty-four years ago, during a dog demonstration for profoundly disabled kids, veteran Illinois teacher Nancy Lind had an epiphany: The students, she realized, understood that the dog and its leash were connected. Maybe dogs could motivate children to accomplish goals experts deemed unattainable. Was she right!<\/p>\n
She created a nonprofit organization, Rainbow Animal Assisted Therapy, and has made major breakthroughs with autistic and severely disabled children with trained dogs. The kids have learned to put on hats and gloves after dogs pulled them off, and mastered the use of spoons and forks to make applesauce sandwiches that they \u201cserved\u201d to the dogs.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re very goal-oriented with physical, behavioral and cognitive skills,\u201d Lind says.<\/p>\n
That includes playing games (soccer, fly ball and bowling with dogs), giving them commands and learning to shed their fear of animals.<\/p>\n
Lind\u2019s organization, founded in 1987, has 250 dogs working in 150 programs in the greater Chicago area.<\/p>\n
Animal-Assisted Therapy #5: Assistance for disabled people
A paralyzed woman\u2019s cell phone tumbles from her lap to the ground, the parts scattering like a broken dish. Her 8-pound Capuchin monkey, trained to help her, gathers up the batteries and other pieces. Responding to verbal commands, such as \u201cflip,\u201d \u201cturn\u201d and \u201cpush,\u201d the monkey reassembles the phone, replacing it on her owner\u2019s lap.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese monkeys can flip pages of a book, load DVDs and turn on computers,\u201d explains Megan Talbert, executive director of Helping Hands: Monkey Helpers for the Disabled, a nonprofit organization that provides trained monkeys to adults with spinal cord injuries.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey know their names, words and commands,\u201d she says. Plus, \u201cthey\u2019re intelligent, cuddly and affectionate, and make great companions.\u201d<\/p>\n
The monkeys, which weigh only about 10 pounds, can sit on the shoulders and laps of their owners, providing warm contact and affection.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmy [the monkey] rides on my shoulder and grooms my hair,\u201d says M.K., a Wisconsin Helping Hands client who only has sensation above her torso. (She wished to remain anonymous).<\/p>\n
\u201cI can actually feel her fur and body warmth on my face \u2013 and that means more to me than I can even say,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
It costs about $38,000 to raise a monkey from birth through its training as a service animal. Helping Hands pays all monkey-related expenses for their lifetime \u2013 up to 35 years \u2013 including vet expenses and food.<\/p>\n
Animal-Assisted Therapy #6: PTSD partners
Up to 30% of the more than 2 million U.S. soldiers deployed to combat zones in the last two years or so experienced post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to the University of Maryland Veterans and Shelter Dogs Initiative.<\/p>\n
They often face many hurdles as they re-enter family and work life. Vets with PTSD re-experience intrusive memories, are hyper-vigilant and avoid relationships.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s where animal-assisted therapy is making a difference.<\/p>\n
In a 2-year, 3-phase study that began in March 2010 at the University of Missouri\u2019s Research Center for Human Animal Interaction, 50 veterans were paired with shelter dogs in a dog-walking and obedience-training program. Some of the vets mentor new participants, and some are chosen to help with service dog training.<\/p>\n
At each stage, the canine contact is easing PTSD symptoms, says UM\u2019s Johnson.<\/p>\n
The dogs are trained for such tasks as entering a dark room (an anxiety-producing experience for some veterans with PTSD) and flipping on a light switch. They\u2019re also taught to walk around the corner of a store aisle ahead of their owners, signaling the OK to proceed when they\u2019re sure the person won\u2019t bump into strangers unexpectedly.<\/p>\n
As the study proceeds, \u201cwe expect to see improvements in PTSD levels, physical activity and family functioning in the veterans,\u201d Johnson says.<\/p>\n
Animal-Assisted Therapy #7: Help with visual and hearing impairment, heart disease, hypertension and other conditions
Anyone who\u2019s had a pet knows that spending time with Fido is an excellent tonic for short-term or chronic health conditions.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why a number of organizations, including Delta Society and American Humane Association, offer animal-assisted therapy for the blind, deaf and hospitalized patients, among others.<\/p>\n
Dogs, cats, rabbits and birds are among animals taken to hospitals and long-term care facilities to interact with patients. Several studies have shown a decrease in some subjects\u2019 heart and respiratory rates, blood pressure and other stress levels while petting animals.<\/p>\n
And while guide dogs have long assisted the blind, horses are now getting service animal training to help them get around, as well as for recreational riding and companionship. They have three advantages over canines: Horses live longer, are non-allergenic, and can assist people who have trouble getting up out of a chair.<\/p>\n
Miniature horses employed by the Guide Horse Foundation are taught with the same techniques as service dog training. They\u2019re allowed in stores and businesses, and can even fly on commercial aircraft.<\/p>\n
\u201cHorses are natural guide animals and have been guiding humans for centuries,\u201d the foundation notes. And unlike with many guide dogs, people immediately recognize a horse as a working service animal.<\/p>\n
Best of all, they create social interaction for their clients. Who could resist something so warm and cuddly?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n
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You know about guide dogs for the blind, but that\u2019s just one of the ways service animals are helping people with health conditions and special needs. Dogs and other four-legged friends can detect disease, aid people with limited mobility and comfort war vets and hospital patients. Read on to learn about the new boom in animal-assisted therapy\u2026 CAT scans and biopsies are useful for detecting cancer, and blood tests can confirm diabetes. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-430548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n