Can Dogs Detect PTSD by Smelling Human Breath?
A pilot study conducted at Dalhousie University in Canada shows that service dogs trained to recognize PTSD flashbacks in people can also be taught to detect these episodes by sniffing their breath, potentially interrupting or alerting their human companions to oncoming symptoms. The study, published in Frontiers in Allergy, involved 26 humans as scent donors and 25 pet dogs trained in scent detection, with two dogs achieving high accuracy in discriminating between stressed and non-stressed samples. The research suggests that dogs may have the potential to provide assistance to people suffering from PTSD, but further validation and research are needed.