Health Message (April 09, 2026)

Blessed Sabbath Church Family,

I remember when I had a cat that I loved deeply. Her name was, Olivia Noble, named after a great lady that I had adopted as my grandma. She was like most cats, kind of snobbish, but I was clearly her love, she followed me everywhere and loved to sit or lay near me wherever I was. She gave me great comfort, as a single mom with young boys. And lots of giggles at her silly antic’s.

Pets, especially dogs and cats, can reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, ease loneliness, encourage exercise and playfulness, and even improve your cardiovascular health. Caring for an animal can help children grow up more secure and active. Pets also provide valuable companionship for older adults. Perhaps most importantly, though, a pet can add real joy and unconditional love to your life.

• Pet owners are less likely to suffer from depression than those without pets.

• People with pets have lower blood pressure in stressful situations than those without pets. One study even found that when people with borderline hypertension adopted dogs from a shelter, their blood pressure declined significantly within five months.

• Pet owners have lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels (indicators of heart disease) than those without pets.

• Heart attack patients with pets survive longer than those without.

• Pet owners over age 65 make 30 percent fewer visits to their doctors than those without pets.

"The intelligence displayed by many dumb animals approaches so closely to human intelligence that it is a mystery. The animals see and hear and love and fear and suffer. They use their organs far more faithfully than many human beings use theirs. They manifest sympathy and tenderness toward their companions in suffering. Many animals show an affection for those who have charge of them, far superior to the affection shown by some of the human race. They form attachments for man which are not broken without great suffering to them." - The Ministry of Healing, pgs. 315, 316

“A righteous man regards the life of his animal, But the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” Proverbs 12:10

May God bless your journey to good health.

Your Sister in Christ, Sandra Torres