Low Glycemic Pet Foods???

[3feathers]

I was reading this the other day, thought it was interesting. I wanted to get everyone's opinion on this.

Dr. Elliott’s Natural Health Column Glycemic Levels in Dogs and Cats Fact or Fiction Pet owners are rightfully concerned with the alarming increase of diabetes in dogs and cats. Diabetes has become a major concern for pet owners and their pets. Diabetes is a human problem- why is this phenomenon occurring in pets? There are pet food manufacturers claiming to have low glycemic foods, even some claiming to have won awards for their low glycemic dog or cat foods. Are these claims real? Is there a real dog or cat food glycemic level established from the FDA or AAFCO? Answer: NO We were informed of a company that does glycemic testing based in the US. I called them and asked specific questions- these are some of the questions and responses. 1- Has the FDA or AAFCO approved glycemic numbers for pets? Answer: NO 2- Does your company specifically do testing for pets? Answer: No, we do human glycemic testing. 3- Has your company or any company that you are aware of established a long term testing program determining actual glycemic levels for dogs or cats? Answer: No, but we are in the process of developing a program. 4- Is there any scientific proof that the numbers you are using are accurate for pets? Answer: No 5- Did you know that some pet food companies are using your low glycemic seal on their pet food bags claiming to be low glycemic pet foods? Answer: They are probably using human index numbers and converting to pets. 6- Do you have a conversion table to convert human glycemic levels to dog or cat levels? Answer: No Pretty scary--- Now, let’s look at various ingredients used in pet foods and see what the glycemic value is on the human index- the scale goes from 1 to 100, 100 being very high on the glycemic chart. This is a random sampling. Potatoes 88 White Rice 72 Barley 25 Apple 38 Carrots 47 Yam 37 Corn 78 Brown Rice 55 Sprouts 25 Artichoke 15 Green Beans 15 Sweet Potato 50 Blueberries 44 Peas 48 Tapioca 56 Papaya 56 Potatoes are rated the highest in the glycemic index (sugar levels) for root vegetables. Potatoes have as much sugar in them as a Sugar Donut. Imagine what Your system would be like if you ate sugar donuts every day! Peas- are located in the lower middle section of the glycemic index- however; an over usage of peas and/or pea fiber may cause intestinal distress in dogs.

[RawFedDogs]

Very interesting ... Thank you.

[MollyWoppy]

Yes, thank you for posting this. I'm going to email it to my friend who is feeding a vet prescribed diet to her diabetic cat.

[bumblegoat]

And this is why we should not feed our dogs carbs. All carbs have the same effect on the body in the long run, they elevate the blood sugar and to fix that the body creates insulin. Long time exposure to insulin can cause insulin resistance and diabetes. Insulin is also a hormon that plays a big role when it comes to storing fat, so carbs are also a big cultprit when it comes to obesity.

This actually goes for humans too, but that is a whole other debate...

[JayJayisme]

This is why I don't eat high glycemic index foods myself, and why my dogs don't either.

Here's a previous post on the topic. HypoGlycemic

[baggie]

Reposted for easy reading. :)

Dr. Elliott’s Natural Health Column Glycemic Levels in Dogs and Cats Fact or Fiction Pet owners are rightfully concerned with the alarming increase of diabetes in dogs and cats. Diabetes has become a major concern for pet owners and their pets. Diabetes is a human problem- why is this phenomenon occurring in pets? There are pet food manufacturers claiming to have low glycemic foods, even some claiming to have won awards for their low glycemic dog or cat foods.

Are these claims real? Is there a real dog or cat food glycemic level established from the FDA or AAFCO? Answer: NO We were informed of a company that does glycemic testing based in the US. I called them and asked specific questions- these are some of the questions and responses.

1- Has the FDA or AAFCO approved glycemic numbers for pets? Answer: NO 2- Does your company specifically do testing for pets? Answer: No, we do human glycemic testing. 3- Has your company or any company that you are aware of established a long term testing program determining actual glycemic levels for dogs or cats? Answer: No, but we are in the process of developing a program.

4- Is there any scientific proof that the numbers you are using are accurate for pets? Answer: No 5- Did you know that some pet food companies are using your low glycemic seal on their pet food bags claiming to be low glycemic pet foods? Answer: They are probably using human index numbers and converting to pets. 6- Do you have a conversion table to convert human glycemic levels to dog or cat levels? Answer: No

Pretty scary--- Now, let’s look at various ingredients used in pet foods and see what the glycemic value is on the human index- the scale goes from 1 to 100, 100 being very high on the glycemic chart. This is a random sampling. Potatoes 88 White Rice 72 Barley 25 Apple 38 Carrots 47 Yam 37 Corn 78 Brown Rice 55 Sprouts 25 Artichoke 15 Green Beans 15 Sweet Potato 50 Blueberries 44 Peas 48 Tapioca 56 Papaya 56 Potatoes are rated the highest in the glycemic index (sugar levels) for root vegetables.

Potatoes have as much sugar in them as a Sugar Donut. Imagine what Your system would be like if you ate sugar donuts every day! Peas- are located in the lower middle section of the glycemic index- however; an over usage of peas and/or pea fiber may cause intestinal distress in dogs.

[Serendipity]

Thanks for posting! I think I know which brand you're talking about, but the amount of potatoes should be considered as well. I do agree that the low glycemic label may not be very accurate, though.