People may wonder if they should share their bed with a pet. In fact, sharing your bedroom with your canine companion may improve your sleep, according to recent research published by Mayo Clinic Proceedings. People with depression or anxiety may benefit from having their pet in the bed because the pet is a big pillow, a big blanket, and they may feel that snuggly, cuddly, furry creature decreases their anxiety.

很多人会好奇：究竟能不能和宠物同床睡觉。医学期刊《梅奥诊所学报》最近的一项研究显示，和犬类宠物同屋睡觉可能会改善睡眠。和宠物同睡可能会对抑郁或焦虑的人有好处，因为宠物就像一个大枕头、一条大毯子，这种温暖舒适、毛茸茸、让人想拥抱的感觉会减轻他们的焦虑情绪。

“Today, many pet owners are away from their pets for much of the day, so they want to maximize their time with them when they are home,” stated Lois Krahn, M.D., study co-author and a sleep medicine specialist. “Having them in the bedroom at night is an easy way to do that. And, now, pet owners can find comfort knowing it won’t negatively impact their sleep.”

“现在，很多主人白天不在宠物身边，因此，他们希望回家时能多花些时间陪伴它们，”这项研究报告的共同作者、睡眠医学专家Lois Krahn医学博士表示，“让宠物晚上和自己在一个房间睡觉就是很好的办法。另外，现在宠物主人也可以放心，他们的宠物不会对自己的睡眠造成负面影响。”

The report left many pet owners puzzled, though. Pet experts have long advised pet owners not to sleep with their dogs or cats for at least two main reasons: poor behavior in the animal and illness in humans.

不过，这项报告还是令不少宠物主人心生疑惑。长久以来，宠物专家一直建议宠物主人不要和他们的猫狗睡在一起，原因有两个：动物行为不老实，人类还容易患病。

Animals may move, bark and disrupt sleep. Sleep in dogs (and cats) is not continuous and they will inevitably get up and walk on the bed, stepping on people. All of that activity will lead to sleep fragmentation. These micro-awakenings, which can happen without your awareness, are disruptive because they pull you out of deep sleep. They have been associated with the release of the stress hormone, cortisol, which can make sleep even worse."

动物会动来动去，大声叫唤，干扰人类的睡眠。狗（和猫）的睡眠是间断性的，睡一会儿就必然会醒来，在床上走来走去踩到主人。这些活动都会导致主人睡眠片段化。这些你可能意识不到的短暂觉醒破坏性很强，因为它会打断深度睡眠。人们发现这种短暂觉醒还会影响压力激素——皮质醇——的分泌，使睡眠变得更糟。

However, many vets now believe concerns over such issues are overstated or just incorrect. Data from the Mayo Clinic’s Center for Sleep Medicine in Phoenix found over half of pet owners seen in the clinic allowed their pet to sleep in the bedroom – and the majority found their pet “unobtrusive or even beneficial to sleep.” A 2021 study asked adolescents ages 13 to 17 to wear sleep trackers for two weeks and then undergo a state-of-the-art sleep test. About a third of the kids slept with a pet, the study noted, which didn’t appear to affect the quality of their rest.

不过，现在很多兽医都认为这样的担心过于夸张，也不准确。凤凰城的梅奥诊所睡眠医学中心收集的数据表明，来诊所的超半数宠物主人都让宠物在卧室里睡觉，大部分人认为自己的宠物“没有干扰、甚至有助于自己的睡眠。”2021年的一项研究让13到17岁的青少年连续两周佩戴睡眠追踪器并接受最先进的睡眠测试。研究指出，约有三分之一的孩子和宠物一起睡，而且宠物似乎没有影响他们的睡眠质量。

1. canine adj. 犬的

2. snuggly adj. 温暖舒适的

3. cuddly adj. 令人想拥抱的

4. furry adj. 覆盖毛皮的

5. fragmentation n. 破碎，分裂

6. cortisol n. 皮质醇

7. tracker n. 追踪器

8. state-of-the-art adj. （技术上）最先进的