Cats may be one of the most loved animals on this planet. These lucky felines domesticated themselves in an effort to get more food, ending with millions of people around the world with their own house lions.

A study done in 2020 by Takumi Nagasawa, Mitsuaki Ohta, Hidehiko Uchiyama, and edited by Alberto Dalla Mora, called ‘Effects of the characteristic temperament of cats on the emotions and hemo-dynamic responses of humans’, goes into detail about how cats positively affect their owners.

In the article, they describe experiments where the subjects interact with cats, and then measure their prefrontal cortex activity. 

After the subjects interacted with the cats, they were then given a questionnaire in relation to the success of the interaction with the cats. They then did a Manikin assessment, which is a scale used to measure emotion based on the results of the assessment.

The results after the initial interaction with the cats are shocking; the subjects’ prefrontal cortex activity increased significantly. 

The prefrontal cortex is in the anterior portion of the frontal lobe, as it’s part of the limbic system, and the parasympathetic nervous system.

While all parts of the brain are important, the prefrontal cortex is one of the more important parts because of its role. It’s responsible for reasoning, personality expression, decision-making, and many other complex cognitive behaviors.

So, if interacting with cats makes one of the most important parts of your brain almost triple its activity, owning a cat could be the secret to being happy and mentally healthy.

In the USA alone there are more than 60 million stray and feral cats, and there are 3.4 million cats in USA shelters alone. Out of that 3.4 million, 1.4 million are euthanized.

So, grab your family, go to the local animal shelter, and adopt a cat. It might make you happier than you’d ever know.