Dogowners walked about 23minues longer each day than non-dog owners In a new stu-组卷网

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Dog owners walked about 23minues longer each day than non-dog owners In a new study, dog owners took 2,760 additional seps—compared to people who didn’t have a dog at home. Bu here’s the real good news: That extra exercise was done at a moderate（适度的）pace, which means it could help adults meet their recommended weekly totals for physical activity.

The research, published in BMC Public Health, focused on adults 65 and older, who tend to be less active than younger people. The study included 43 dog owners and 43 non-dog owners, all of whom were monitored continuously for three week-long periods. When they compared the two groups, the researchers found that dog ownership was associated with a large, potentially health-improving effect.

Dog owners walked about 23 minutes longer each day than non-dog owners, 119 minutes versus 96 minutes on average. They also took an additional 2,760 steps, and had eight fewer continuous periods of sitting down. Most of that extra walking was done at moderate pace, defined as 100 or more steps a minute. Dog owners walked at this pace for 32 minutes a day, versus just 11 minutes a day for non-dog owners.

The World Health Organization（WHO）recommends that adults get at least 150 minutes of physical activity a week. This increased walking time alone could just about satisfy that requirement, say the researchers—so it makes total sense that 87 percent of dog owners in the study met these guidelines, versus just 47 percent of non-dog owners.

Co-author Nancy Gee says that pet ownership may help older adults get more activity or maintain their current activity level for a longer period of time. “This could improve their chances of a better quality of life, improved or maintained cognition（认知）, and perhaps, even overall longevity（寿命）,”she said.

Here at Health, we’ ll add that caring for pets has been shown to have plenty of other physical and mental health benefits, as well. As animal lovers ourselves, we’ re happy to add one more to the list.

【小题1】What can we learn about the research？

A．It was targeted on old people.

B．It was sponsored by the WHO.

C．It had an undesirable effect on dog owners.

D．It took the mental health of dog owners into consideration.

【小题2】What does the author intend to do in Paragraph 3？

A．To present the results of the research.

B．To show the guidelines of the research.

C．To describe the process of doing the research.

D．To explain the reasons for conducting the research.

【小题3】What does Nancy Gee think of owning a dog?

A．It is too expensive.