The benefits of owning a pet are plentiful – from constant company to endless cuddles – and now it seems that sharing your house with a fury friend might be good for your health, too.

A new Canadian study has found that babies from pet-owning families (70% of which had dogs) possessed more microbes linked with a lower allergy and obesity risk than their pet-less counterparts, setting them up for a healthier future.

A team from the University of Alberta studied faecal samples from the Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development study, which is made up of 20 years' worth of research. It was discovered that babies in the womb and early after birth (up to three months) who had been exposed to pets had higher levels of the Ruminococcus and Oscillospria bacteria – two types of microbe that have been linked to reduced levels of childhood allergies and obesity.

Scientists have theorised that exposure to dirt in early life – for example, in a dog's fur and on its paws – creates early immunity in newborn children. However, it seems that there is only a certain amount of time in which the effects of these microbes can be felt. Anita Kozyrskyj, who led the research, said:

"There's definitely a critical window of time when gut immunity and microbes co-develop, and when disruptions to the process result in changes to gut immunity."

She added:

"It's not far-fetched that the pharmaceutical industry will try to create a supplement of these microbiomes, much like was done with probiotics."

Pet exposure was shown to affect the gut microbiome indirectly – from dog to mother to unborn baby – so, even if the dog was given away shortly after birth, this healthy bacteria exchange would still take place. Furthermore, it was found that three birth scenarios known to reduce immunity in newborns (C-section versus vaginal delivery, antibiotics during birth and a lack of breastfeeding) did not have an effect on microbe levels.

The study, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Allergy, Genes and Environment Network (AllerGen NCE), was published in the journal Microbiome.

Jenny Cook Jenny Cook is a health writer, amateur athlete and full-time foodie.

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