Reviews for Healing Power
January 8, 2008, 10:39 am
The Healing Power of Dogs Back to Home
Dogs may play a larger role in health than realized. (Viktor Korotayev/Reuters)
Dogs have long had special standing in the medical world. Trained to see for the blind, hear for the deaf and move for the immobilized, dogs have become indispensable companions for people with disabilities.
But dogs appear to be far more than four-legged health care workers. Over the years, data on the larger role dogs play in health has trickled out from various corners of the world. One Japanese study found pet owners made 30 percent fewer visits to doctors. A Melbourne study of 6,000 people showed that owners of dogs and other pets had lower cholesterol, blood pressure and heart attack risk compared with people who didn’t have pets. Obviously, the better health of pet owners could be explained by a variety of factors, but many experts believe companion animals improve health at least in part by lowering stress.
Dogs, in particular, also have been shown to do remarkable things to improve the health of their owners. There are stories of dogs warning their owners of imminent health threats. In 2003, University of Florida researchers published a report in the journal Seizure noting that some dogs seem to have an innate ability to detect impending seizures. A 2000 report in the British Medical Journal examined case studies of dogs alerting people with diabetes of a coming hypoglycemic episode.
More recently, some studies have suggested dogs can be cancer detectors. In 2006, the medical journal Integrative Cancer Therapies reported how ordinary house dogs could identify breast and lung cancer patients by smelling their breath. A University of Maine study is testing whether dogs can sniff out ovarian cancer.
The role dogs play in medicine is celebrated in a new book, “Paws & Effect: The Healing Power of Dogs’’ (Alyson Books, 2007), which chronicles the numerous ways dogs contribute to our health. Author Sharon Sakson is a journalist and television producer, dog breeder and American Kennel Club dog-show judge. She admits to being biased about her subject matter, and she tends to write about the mundane details of dogs and their owners. Much of the evidence surrounding dogs and health is anecdotal, although Ms. Sakson includes many references to published research. The stories of service dogs are particularly impressive, as is the nascent research into dogs’ ability to detect cancer.
Ms. Sakson said she first began thinking about the link between dogs and health while reporting an earlier book on men and dogs. A few men she interviewed who had AIDS credited their dogs with playing a role in their improved health.
While Ms. Sakson says more studies are needed to show exactly what role dogs play in health, any dog owner already knows the benefits of their relationship with their pet.
“I went into it because I loved my dogs — they can do so much for our society,'’ said Ms. Sakson. “There’s no question they give us emotional support.'’
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Today’s guest: Sharon Sakson, author of ‘Paws & Effect: The Healing Power of Dogs’
Radio host Mike Carruthers interviews interesting people who have information about something you should know.
Mike Carruthers:
Dogs can smell cancer? Exciting new research seems to point that way.
Sharon Sakson:
The dogs who can find cancer can find it whether it’s barely begun and in stage one or if it’s stage four and very serious.
M.C.:
Sharon Sakson, author of the book “Paws & Effect: The Healing Power of Dogs.”
S.S.:
There’s a Scottish terrier named Kyle who kept licking and bumping his owner’s jaw. Finally she went to the doctor and the doctor took her right to the hospital and she ended up having to have half her jaw removed because of cancer. And only because this dog wouldn’t stop bothering her jaw did she go to the doctor.
M.C.:
One theory is that cancer has a definite smell, and to dogs anyway it’s a terrible smell. And it doesn’t take any special kind of dog to detect this. Also, dogs seem to be able to smell an epileptic seizure before it happens. Sharon says a dog trainer in Georgia trains dogs to help people with epilepsy.
S.S.:
She trains dogs so that if a person has a seizure the dog does what’s appropriate, which might be to go get help, it might be to bring a bottle of pills. Now what started to happen is that they saw the dogs suddenly start doing these things BEFORE the person had the seizure. And that was where the dog trained itself, “Ahh, I smell that smell; I’m going to bring the pills.”
To hear the complete interview with Sharon Sakson go to www.telegram.com/Something
Sakson, Sharon. Paws & Effect: The Healing Power of Dogs. Alyson, dist. by Consortium. 2007. 288p. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-1-59350-038-2. $24.95. PETS
As with her first book, Paws and Reflect: A Special Bond Between Man and Dog (coauthored with Neil Plakcy), Sakson here turns her attention to the meaningful human-canine relationship and thoughtfully illustrates the therapeutic value of dogs. She offers intriguing snippets of information about dog domestication, the evolution of ancient and modern breeds, canine behavior, and animal-assisted therapy. Drawing on incidents from her personal life and the collected testimonies of therapists, war veterans, disabilities advocates, and patients coping with life-threatening or chronic diseases, she shows several examples of successful human-canine partnerships. Sakson profiles earnest, hardworking dogs that offer their owners unwavering companionship, therapeutic support, and a raison d’être. Although her thesis is hardly groundbreaking, her thoroughly readable stories are largely inspiring and warmly told, and they persuasively point to the depth of the human-dog bond. An appendix with FAQs (on service animals in places of business) and a list of suggested web sites complete the book. Recommended for public library pet collections.—Miriam Tuliao, NYPL
Book Review: Paws & Effect by Sharon Sakson
From The Moderate Voice: Entertainment Reviews Thursday, February 14, 2008
by Jessica Schneider
I admit that I am a dog liker but a cat lover. Still, despite my like for dogs I was interested in reading Paws & Effect because as an animal lover, I have always been curious in knowing more regarding their “healing power”. It has been observed that dogs have an uncanny ability to not only sense physical danger (as in natural disasters) before it happens, but also an ability to detect cancers and illness in people.
Paws & Effect provides readers numerous anecdotes where not only dogs detect illness but also the book details the ways in which the physical comfort of an animal can have a healing power on the person. In the beginning of the book, the author discusses how after the death of her mother she had suffered a depression so severe that she contemplated suicide. But ultimately it was the presence of her dog that forced her to push past it and live on, since the human-canine bond had made her realize that her dog needed her and so therefore she must stay alive because of that.
Several of the other examples include one dog that began to scratch and bite at its owner’s mole (which turned out to be cancerous) as well as another dog that went up to a man with heart trouble and rested on his chest. There are even dogs that are trained to respond to those humans suffering from seizures, and one of the other points the book mentions is the importance of that human-dog bond and how more often than not, it is the dog which chooses the person and not the other way around.
One man who was ill and dying of AIDS was at least comforted by his dog snuggling up against him while the man shivered with fever. Then, upon falling so ill, the man had to be rushed to the hospital.
The doctors began to administer drug therapy and the book notes that for several days he showed no response. Then once he came to learn that his dog would be taken care of he instantly began to show improvement. This isn’t necessarily something that has to do with dogs per se, but rather, once he knew the creature he cared about was being cared for, he was comforted by that fact, and his body and mind were able to focus on recovery.
The book covers both the psychological connection humans have for their dogs as well as the dogs’ natural ability to sense malaise, illness, and even approaching death in people. One anecdote the author mentions is how when one girl had to go to physical therapy–at first she was not eager to do her exercises because she was feeling so depressed. Yet once she had the presence of this one little dog, her depression lifted and she was more willing to go through the steps (literally) in learning how to walk again.
Just to give a bit of my own background, there is no denial of dogs’ abilities when it comes to aiding humans. From their keen instincts to aiding the blind, dogs have certainly proven themselves to be worthy of the title of “man’s best friend”. Yet for me, cats have always been more mysterious and natural hunters and so for that, as well as their independence, they have always fascinated me more on a personal level. I can’t say that I’ve ever experienced any deep bond with a dog but I have experienced many with cats and I am no less an animal lover. I can certainly empathize with those who love their dogs.
Paws & Effect is a read that would interest any dog lover, (an most likely any animal lover) yet despite the many anecdotes, the book didn’t offer much information that I didn’t already know. For those who already know of dogs’ “healing powers” this book will just reemphasize that point with examples—many of which the author set out to investigate herself. The book description notes that she sought out “academic institutions, veterinarians’ offices, dog breeders, charitable organizations, and even the military.”
There is also an introduction by David Frei. Paws & Effect will provide readers with a good summation of the human-dog experience and give readers something to enjoy as they curl up with the book and most likely a dog (or in my case a cat) not too far away.
Feb. 13, 2008 Pahrump Valley Times
By The Bookworm Says
Terri Schlichenmeyer
Author offers 'Paws & Effect'
When pet owners get together, nobody can resist sharing stories, and although there's nothing new to learn, it's still fun.
"Paws & Effect" is a lot like that. Author Sakson breeds whippets and Brussels griffons, and it's obvious that she loves dogs. Like a true canine connoisseur, she shares an abundance of tales about people who work with dogs, learn from dogs, and a few stories of folks who weren't "dog people" but quickly became converts when they found just the right pup.
"Paws & Effect" is a slim book, but it's packed with some gigantic stories. If you share your life with a dog, it's definitely something you'll want to dig up.
To read the entire review: Author Offers ‘Paws & Effect’
Roxie is a 13-year-old Wire-Haired Fox Terrier. True to her breed, she is smart, willful, exuberant, and fiercely loyal.
http://roxies-world.blogspot.com/2008/01/readers-reports.html
Enough about you humans. Here are a couple of dog treats readers have recently sniffed out for us. One of Moose's students (whose privacy will be protected, because we are big believers in the Buckley Amendment around here) sent us this tantalizing report about Hungarian scientists working on computer software for analyzing dog barks so that humans can better understand dogs' basic emotions. Note to the well-meaning Hungarian scientists: Why don't you just read the dogs' blogs??? Also, the Shy One sent us a link to this New York Times story on the healing power (for humans) of dogs. The story promotes yet another new book, this one by Sharon Sakson, Paws and Effect: The Healing Power of Dogs. To heck with a healthy diet, people! You want lower cholesterol? Go snuggle a dog!
Friday, March 21, 2008
TC Palm - Florida’s Treasure Coast and the Palm Beaches
NEW BOOKS
Dogs have long been called man's best friend, but a new book by Sharon Sakson goes further than that with stories about how dogs have saved lives, helped their masters through serious illnesses or even alerted an epileptic before he was about to have a seizure. "Paws & Effects: the Healing Power of Dogs" takes a serious look at the science behind these stories that demonstrate the beneficial bond between man and his canine friends.
Hello Sharon,
I am nearly done with Paws & Effect, it is a beautiful and informative book. I have laughed and cried so many times during my reading. Today I read the chapter about Gay and Mr. G.B...I can't tell you how many people have called my Hank the ugliest dog ever and smiled and laughed the entire time they were in his presence. Then you mentioned Greer, I took my classes with her. It just all seems so serendipitous. Anyways, I could go on and on about your book but I'm guessing you have heard it a million times. So I will just say thank you..
Kim
From The Healing Power of Dogs blog entry by Sherry Carpenter
In recent interviews, Sharon Sakson talked about why she wrote a book titled, The Healing Power of Dogs. It isn't the book one would expect. When Sakson was quite young her mother died and her grandmother bought her a Wire-haired Fox Terrier. So while the youngster mourned and tried to cope with the death of her mother, her Terrier focused her attention on a world of housetraining, feeding, and exercising, as only a Terrier can! Later a teen-aged Sakson even thought of suicide but had to dismiss the thoughts of taking her own life because of the question, who would take care of Bonnie”? No family member or friend loved the Terrier as she did. Thus, she writes, she learned the power of healing.
I feel that in senior pet owners the need to care for and nurture companion animals plays a large role in keeping these at-risk owners healthy and on the road to recovery. It lessens stress when you can be with your own. You must forget pains and the ease of late rising when a dog needs to be walked and fed. There is no boundary in the healing power of pets among nursing homes, hospitals and home.
Sakson concludes, taking care of your pet is an important responsibility. You can=t count on anyone else to do it. You've got to show up every day.
I must confess that one of the reasons I was drawn to Sakson’s book was her description of the Trenton Kennel Club Show. This was the Show of my early, formative dog years. I worked for a public relations agency and answered directly to the President, Betty Gribbon, who always wore white boots and raised Great Danes. Someday I will write about my Trenton years. For Sakson a dog show like the Trenton fixture was a kind of therapy. Dog shows are still that for me. When I can find someone to go with I am off for a day of therapy and always return feeling happier and more sure of the goodness of life. Last weekend I met Eddie, a Basenji who loves to shop, and an Irish Wolfhound who slept through most of the event only to get up to go into the ring and win Best in Show! With dogs there is only the present–no rear-view mirrors and impending doom.
http://www.stdtc.org/stdtc/sherryscorner/?p=36
Sharon Sakson is a writer, journalist, television producer, breeder and dog show judge. Her new book is Paws & Effect: The Healing Power of Dogs, a look into the many ways canines come to the rescue of their human friends. She is also the author of Paws to Protect: Dogs Savine Lives & Restoring Hope and Paws & Reflect: A Special Bond Between Man & Dog.