Discussion on Animal Therapy, Global Aid, and Junk Food Advertising

This discussion post analyzes the benefits and drawbacks of animal therapy, highlighting its positive impact on mental and physical health, such as reducing stress and promoting companionship. It also explores the role of countries in providing aid during crises, emphasizing the importance of humanitarian assistance. The post further discusses the controversial topic of junk food advertising, arguing against a ban and advocating for education on nutrition. Finally, it addresses health issues in remote areas of Australia, linking them to limited access to healthcare facilities and professionals. The author concludes by emphasizing the responsibilities of pet ownership and the need for careful consideration before acquiring a pet, acknowledging both the advantages and potential health risks associated with pet ownership. The post incorporates several references to support the analysis and discussion.

Running head: DISCUSSION 1
Discussion
Name
Institution

DISCUSSION 2
Part A
Animal therapy is beneficial to animals such as rabbits, dogs, cats, horses, birds, pigs,
guinea pigs and others as it offers physical, mental, and emotional support. For instance, animal
therapy may minimize depression, enhance comfort, facilitate socialization, and decrease the
feeling of alienation. Studies show that cuddling animals such as pets helps to eliminate cuddle
chemical hence causing relaxation in pets (Matchock, 2015). Studies also show that most
individuals in the United States keep pets which helps them to lower blood pressure, heart
diseases, and heart rates. Clearly, animal therapy is beneficial to human-beings as it assists in
improving challenging health disorders and mental health. Animal therapy provides a room for
research where studies prove the antidote concerning animal loneliness and anxiety (Friedmann,
Son & Saleem, 2015). As scientists and experts outline, there are various advantages and
disadvantages of pets concerning health and life quality.
Starting with the advantages, pet ownership is associated with companionship and love.
Individuals who own pets claim that they feel securely attached both emotionally and medically.
Conversely, pets such as dogs serve as guards and can protect against danger. In various
incidences, dogs saved people from potential danger by reacting from intuition hence owners are
said to sleep well especially at night (Garcia, Wertheim, Manson, Chlebowski, Volpe, Howard &
Thomson, 2015). The emotional benefits provided by pets are converted to physiological through
various ways. For instance, there are biological brain impacts where an individual feels stress
relief and the breathing rate decreases. They are seen as great listeners and during bad times they
provide a positive response without judging the situation. They assist people to fight loneliness
and depression and can help a person develop empathy towards others Pets can also be used for

DISCUSSION 3
play especially when they are taken for a walk (Krahn, Tovar & Miller, 2015. Pets can be
engaged in physical activity which is beneficial to the health of individuals. Additionally, when
walking with the pet and meeting other persons provides social benefits. People use this
opportunity to reduce obesity issues. Studies confirm that pets help children in managing stress
prompting the enthusiasm towards learning. Therefore, before owning pets people should
consider the responsibilities and decide if they can handle them. Pets require people to stay with
them where they are fed and cleaned for them to be happy and comfortable.
On the other hand, pet ownership is associated with various disadvantages. Pets can cause
allergies which are transmitted through their saliva, urine, or dander. In case a person is allergic,
it is advisable they keep pets away. Other allergies can be transmitted through pet’s fur or
feathers. If an individual must keep pets, they should take preventive measures to free from
allergies. People incur expenses when acquiring specific pets and transport as pets are expensive
(Gürses, Preneel & Berendt, 2015). Pets need to be offered shelter, food, and other supplies for a
comfortable life. If an individual has stability or gait difficulties, the pet can jump and hit them
causing a situation where they break bones. Pet ownership is connected to sanitary risks. Pet may
carry parasites Taxoplasma gondii which can cause illnesses such as toxoplasmosis. The most
vulnerable persons are those with weak immune systems. Pets’ feces carries bacteria which is
harmful to human health (Cusack & Smith, 2014). People should ensure they have adequate
resources needed to take care of the pets to ensure they protect against allergies. Also, the size of
the pet should as well be considered to ensure they are comfortable mentally and physically.
Part B

DISCUSSION 4
Countries help each other during times of crisis through various ways. First, they provide
life-saving accessories when a disaster arises. Second, they volunteer their time as well as
resources to help the affected individuals in those countries. Through the aid organizations,
countries offer humanitarian aids to millions of individuals affected.
Part C
No, advertising of junk food should not be banned since banning will not help in solving
obesity issues. People are responsible to take care of their healthy hence they should be educated
about nutrition to ensure perfect decisions are made. Some junk foods such as burgers are said to
improve the health of individuals. Therefore, it would be difficult to ban advertising of junk food
since it is controversial and persons have rights to choose what to consume. Additionally, junk
food is not prohibited.
Part D
The remote areas in Australia are associated with ill health issues regardless of the high
needs. The main reason is that these areas have least numbers of health facilities and health
professionals. Poor transport which causes difficulties in accessing health facilities is also a
reason and results in early deaths or hospitalization.
To summarize, acquiring a pet is like adopting a new family member and should be
handled with royalty. They require being given attention, good food, nice pet accessories, and
taking them to fun places. Therefore, pets are of great responsibility and any person anticipating
to own a pet must be financially stable. Pets are associated with various advantages and
disadvantages as outlined in this paper. They can be harmful to human health due to bacteria

DISCUSSION 5
which may be transmitted. Research shows that pets are owned by old people in most cases who
are lonely. However, they put their health at risk and therefore pets should be offered high-
quality care. Therefore, regardless the benefits and disadvantages of pet ownership, people
should think about their personal conditions before deciding.

DISCUSSION 6
References
Cusack, O., & Smith, E. (2014). Pets and the elderly: The therapeutic bond. Routledge.
Friedmann, E., Son, H., & Saleem, M. (2015). The animal–human bond: Health and wellness.
In Handbook on Animal-Assisted Therapy (Fourth Edition) (pp. 73-88).
Garcia, D. O., Wertheim, B. C., Manson, J. E., Chlebowski, R. T., Volpe, S. L., Howard, B.
V., ... & Thomson, C. A. (2015). Relationships between dog ownership and physical
activity in postmenopausal women. Preventive medicine, 70, 33-38.
Gürses, S., Preneel, B., & Berendt, B. (2015). „PETs under Surveillance: A Critical Review of
the Potentials and Limitations of the Privacy as Confidentiality Paradigm “. Seattle,
Washington, United States. Abgerufen, 28.
Krahn, L. E., Tovar, M. D., & Miller, B. (2015, December). Are pets in the bedroom a problem?.
In Mayo Clinic Proceedings(Vol. 90, No. 12, pp. 1663-1665). Elsevier.
Matchock, R. L. (2015). Pet ownership and physical health. Current opinion in psychiatry, 28(5),
386-392.