An article released by ScienceDaily reports of a new study done by the Universite' de Montreal, that shows that dogs may have an effect on the lives of special needs children. According to the study children with Autism Syndrome Disorders can benefit from trained service dogs; that these dogs can reduce their anxiety and improve their social skills. In the study levels of cortisol where measured in the saliva of children with autism. The levels where tested before the presence of the dog, during and after.Parents completed a questionnaire during these times about their child's behaviors. 33 problematic behaviors where present before the dog and 25 where present while living with the dog. This was the first study that measured the physiological impact, researcher Sonia Lupien said, and that the results support the benefits of service dogs with children with autism. This finding may give families with autistic children a way to cope with autism's challenges.
I think it's great that these service dogs can help children with autism. I wonder if these dogs or maybe another animal will help these children with all 33 behaviors, rather then just helping with 8 some where down the road.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a great thing for children with autism. People who are blind have dogs to help them so i could see dogs helping out all people with needs.
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