Dog owners have lower blood pressure, are less likely to be obese and are on average 2.2lbs lighter than people without canine companions, scientists have discovered.

A study by the Mayo Clinic and Italian researchers, showed that people with dogs are far healthier than those with either no pets, or those who own a different animal.

Dog owners also earned more, exercised more, were more likely to be women and were less likely to have diabetes.

Overall, all pet owners had a better lifestyle than those who did not own an animal, but those with dogs were found to be the healthiest.

Dr Andrea Maugeri of the University of Catania in Italy, who led the study said: “In general, people who owned any pet were more likely to report more physical activity, better diet and blood sugar at ideal level.

“The greatest benefits from having a pet were for those who owned a dog, independent of their age, sex and education level.”

Around 45 per cent of Britons own an animal, an increase of five per cent since 2016, and dogs are the most popular with one in four people having a canine.

For the study, researchers looked at 1,769 people, of whom 42 per cent owned a pet. None had any history of heart disease and they were scored on body mass index (BMI), diet, physical activity, smoking status, blood pressure, blood glucose and total cholesterol.