Owning a cat (probably also a dog) can improve your life standards and prevent several serious health issues. The sentence, you have probably heard from multiple cat owners (or voiced it yourself, if you are one of them/us) seems to have a scientific background, and it’s not just the expression of fondness of a person towards his or hers fluffy companion.
According to the study of doctor Adnan I Qureshi and his team, published in the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Neurology 2009 the decreased risk for death due to myocardial infarction and all other cardiovascular diseases (including stroke) was observed among people owning a cat. Pet ownership has been related to reduction in stress, autonomic responses to cold and cognitive tasks, also for the need for medical attention associated with life stressors.
For more info, be sure to check their research online - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3317329/
photo - one of my 3 cats - Ishtar