#3: Diabetes

This is number three in my four-part series on the health problems caused by feeding cats a typical dry food diet. You may want to read the introduction (Name That Food!) first.

I once had a customer whose cat was diabetic and went to the vet every week for an insulin shot. The poor woman was upset because it was so stressful for her cat and so expensive for her, but she wasn't ready to give up on her kitty just yet. She wanted to know if I had any suggestions that might improve the situation. I asked what she was feeding her cat, and she told me. I walked her over to the bags on the shelf and showed her the ingredients (I can't remember which food it was, but it was a pretty typical "premium" dry food like the one used in the example). Like most people, she had never read the ingredient panel and was shocked to see that the food was mostly comprised of grains... especially because she was paying extra for a "premium" food that she believed would help her sick kitty.

I reminded her that the first thing human diabetics are told is to limit carbohydrates in their diets because they disrupt their blood-sugar levels and make their symptoms worse. As far as grains go, corn contains quite a bit of fructose, which is why it's so tasty and sweet... and so very bad for your cat.

Remember: Cats have NO metabolic need for carbohydrates of any kind, especially simple ones like sugar (the fructose in corn)! In some cats, excess consumption of these unnecessary grains CAN lead to devastating health problems, like diabetes.

Also, I can only imagine how much the chronic dehydration caused by a diet of dry food exacerbated the cat's diabetes.

I suggested that my customer try a grain free canned food for a few weeks, just to see what would happen. It cost a little more than her regular diet, but not by much, and the vet bills were so extravagant that it was definitely worth a shot. She came back in a month later and told me that her vet sent his blood glucose meter in to be checked because her cat tested normal for the first time and, when she told him it was because of the new food, he said that he didn't believe that the cat food would make a difference. We both laughed about that ridiculous statement. If you think about it, many humans are able to control diabetes by regulating the amount of carbohydrates they eat, so why should cats, which shouldn't eat grains or sugars to begin with, be any different?

My customer was thrilled with the food and said that her cat was more active and playful that it had been in years... and she was saving oodles of money by avoiding frequent veterinary appointments. She actually thanked me for "saving" her cat with my suggestion. Isn't it amazing that a young pet store clerk with a little common sense can correct health problems more efficiently than a vet?