Go Ahead And Kiss Your Dog. Science Says It’s Good For Your Health.
Did you know your dog and yogurt have something in common? WAIT. What!?
The Independent reports that researchers at the University of Arizona (UA) believe that the tiny microbes in a dog’s gut might have a probiotic effect on humans. Our bodies have 500 different types of bacteria living inside of us (ew), some of it’s bad and some of it’s good. The helpful bacteria keeps our digestive and immune systems in tip top shape. As we age, we lose a lot of our good bacteria, negatively impacting our mental and physical health.
Researchers at UA’s new Human-Animal Interaction Research Initiative theorize that owning a dog and letting them plant a big smacker on you once in a while, will help replace the pawsitive microorganisms in your body.
To prove this theory, researchers at UA are conducting a study that pairs adults 50 years or older with rescue pups from The Humane Society of Southern Arizona. Researchers will test the gut bacteria, mental well-being, activity level and immune function of the participants every month. They’ll also test the bacteria and emotional and physical state of the dogs over the course of the study. All tests will be non-invasive to keep members of both two-legged and four-legged groups happy.
http://barkpost.com/kiss-dog-for-good-health/
= new reply since forum marked as read
though his fishy dog breath is an acquired taste! Our 11 year old chocolate Mocha is very, very stingy with the kisses - it is because she is registered, has a chip, a fancy name (supposedly Mocha Latte III) - just a bit of a snob dog! But she is a rescue too - someone gave her to us out of spite because the owner was having marital issues (glad we liberated Mocha from a stressful household!)
So I guess we share a similar gut biome.
I stopped worrying about bad bacteria long ago. 
