Showing posts with label rice in pet food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rice in pet food. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Why Do Many Dog and Cat Foods Contain Rice?


Why Do Many Dog and Cat Foods Contain Rice?

Many pet food companies use rice as a “healthy” inexpensive carbohydrate that is likely to be an allergen then other grains such as wheat, oats or corn. It is a filler that can bring up the protein percentage on the label INSTEAD of using the more costly real meat, fish or poultry. “Premium” brands may market the fact they use brown rice or even organic brown rice as a benefit, but the fact is, the rice is still a replacement for the real nutrition a pet needs. Feeding brown rice and starchy carbohydrates can affect the pet's overall nutritional balance contributing to obesity, yeast overgrowth, skin problems, diabetes and even cancer.  Feeding pets a hypoallergenic, low carbohydrate diet can be life-changing, resulting in fewer infections, lean muscle mass and improved immune health.   Cats are carnivores and do not need carbohydrates whatsoever while dogs thrive when their diet consists of minimal carbohydrates.  The only exception is when pets have liver or kidney disease and require a reduced protein diet, in which case, carbohydrates are necessary to replace calories.  Overall though, carbohydrates are in pet food to reduce the overall cost so to keep your pet lean and healthy, keep the starchy carbohydrates to a minimum. 

To learn more about the effects of starchy carbohydrates such as  rice on your pet's health, please click on the link: