Potential role of aquarium fish keeping during Covid pandemic

Bidyasagar Sanjenbam / Yumnam Bedajit *

COVID-19 is not only a pandemic disease but also associated with other secondary health issues like anxiety, depression and stress due to social stigmatization against unprecedented contagious disease.

These could be resulted from the development of mixed emotion because everyone feel differently and exercise social distancing from family members, friends and relatives to ensure safety. Moreover, infected people are forced to stay isolated to prevent the further spread of the virus at the societal level. So quarantine and self-isolation most likely cause a huge negative impact on one’s mental health.

It is reported that during the pandemic, about 4 in 10 adults in the US suffer anxiety and depression. According to the KFF Health Tracking Poll conducted in July 202, 36% of people suffer difficulty in sleeping, 32% in eating and 12% of the people increased in alcohol consumption and worsening chronic condition by 12% due to worry and stress over coronavirus.

There are many possible ways to cure mental diseases among them is Animal-assisted therapy (AAT) which is one of the promising solutions that helps to cure mental diseases. Association with pets helps to bring calm, relaxation by inducing happy hormones.

So, there is a potential scope of aquarium fish keeping assisting in fighting the COVID-19 situation. Some of the scientific evidence of aquarium keeping and its benefits are highlighted below:

1. Aquarium helps to drop the stress level with the production of neurochemicals called gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA). It is an amino acid that helps to reduce anxiety and stabilizes blood pressure.

2. Aquarium helps to induce a sudden sensation of happiness because gazing at the aquarium will induce neurochemical called endocannabinoid which helps to regulate and balance body functions like energy balance, appetite stimulation, blood pressure, control of nausea and vomiting.

3. Watching colourful aquarium fish induces general sensory stimulation to eat better, gain weight and stay mentally active. These could be achieved through the restoration of the appropriate level of master neurotransmitters like serotonin and catecholamine groups such as dopamine and adrenaline. Adrenaline hormone is responsible for energy surges in the body that will take away the dullness and, dopamine is a hormone associated with pleasurable sensations along with learning, memory, motor system function.

4. You may wonder that aquarium has a positive impact on nutrient uptake and ultimately help us to gain weight. It was evident scientifically by Edward and Beck in 2002 while treating Alzheimer patient with the aquarium.

So, it will be beneficial to medical healthcare units to install the aquarium for curing the mental disorders lead by COVID-19.

All these could be achieved through proper consultation and installation of the aquarium with a professional aquarist because there is science behind species selection, the water quality of the tank, prevention of fish diseases and other post-installation management of the aquarium to ensure healthy fish keeping.


For further details contact:- Public Relation & Media Management Cell, CAU, Imphal. Email: [email protected]