Eating Dry Food Does Not Cause a Cat to Develop Diabetes Mellitus

There has long been a debate about whether or not feeding a cat large quantities of dry food can lead to the animal developing diabetes mellitus in middle age. The cause of diabetes mellitus in felines, which can be fatal, is still unknown. Now a study conducted by a veterinarian from the University of Missouri-Columbia shows that the possible cause is weight gain and not the kind of food.

It is because dry food has a higher level of starch and carbohydrates than is found in canned food, it is believed that eating large quantities of dry food is the cause. They argue that it is unnatural for a cat to eat that much carbohydrates because a cat is both anatomically and physiologically a carnivore. Dry cat food contains between 30 to 40% carbohydrates whereas wet cat food is higher in protein and is more like a natural diet for a carnivore.

The team compared two groups of cats, one in California who were raised on dry food and one in New Zealand who were raised on canned food. They gave each group glucose-tolerance tests. These tests measure blood samples and shows the rate at which glucose is being removed from the blood after a meal. The results showed that there was no significant difference between the two groups. They also divided the cats into groups by age, those under 3 and those over 3 and they found that letting a cat eat so much that by the time it is middle age, it is overweight causes more harm than the type of food they eat. They did find that cats who had the canned or wet foods did not have as much of a tendency to become obese than those on the dry food.

All in all, 40% of middle aged cats are either overweight or obese. A male should weight between 10 and 11 pounds and a female between 5.5 and 7.7. And cats should not have more than 18 to 20% body fat. Diabetes is not the only condition that can affect overweight felines. They are also prone to such conditions as skin diseases, oral diseases and certain cancers. Cats who are spayed or neutered tend to eat more and gain more weight. They suggest strictly monitoring the amount the cat eats and make sure it does not eat in excess. It is the owner who should be the one who decides how much to eat, not the cat.

The lead researcher is Robert Backus, who is an assistant professor and director of the Nestle Purina Endowed Small Animal Nutrition Program at MU.

Source:University of Missouri-Columbia http://www.eurekalert.org/

Source: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/468122/eating_dry_food_does_not_cause_a_cat.html