FOOD & NUTRITION

When we think of dietary changes to treat an illness, we tend to think of them as a kind of Band-Aid approach. The attitude among many people is that eating differently may help at the margins but is nothing compared to the power of pharmaceuticals or surgical procedures. Not true, either for us or our cats. In a number of cases, a change in diet can extend life for years, and also the quality of life.

Many people feed their cat twice a day—once in the morning and once in the evening—and cats in general seem to do fine on that schedule. Some people feed their cats just once a day, and even those pets appear to do okay, although they might like their food divided between two feedings in order not to get too hungry overnight. But if a cat had his druthers, he’d probably prefer several small meals a day—three, four, or even five. Why?

Q: In a recent issue you talked about why cats love tuna but left out the most important thing, which is that tuna generally has high concentrations of mercury and that mercury is poison. Why would anyone who loves their cat knowingly feed them poison? You should print a follow-up article that makes people aware of the danger in feeding tuna to their pets.

Q: I noticed that some of the nutrients listed in the Guaranteed Analysis panel on the label of my cat’s food have an asterisk that leads to the following statement: “Not Recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Cat Food Nutrient Profiles.” If it’s not recognized as an essential nutrient, why would the manufacturer add it? The nutrients are not named in big letters on the front of the package as a marketing point.

Sometimes, to treat a medical condition, it’s necessary to change a cat’s diet. Diet changes can be a challenge with cats, however. They develop their food preferences very early on in life and may be reticent to adjust them. That’s why, until a kitten is about four months old, it’s a good idea to feed him a variety of foods — different flavors, shapes, and textures of both dry and wet. That way, if he develops an illness in adulthood that requires he eat food that’s different from what he’s used to, he will be less likely to resist the switch.

You know those television commercials that have a dentist in a lab coat recommending a particular toothpaste? Well, the marketing ploy has drifted over to products meant for our pets, in a manner of speaking. A number of cat food manufacturers have a burst in large letters on the front of their packages that says the product is “Veterinarian Recommended.”

The board-certified veterinary nutritionists at Tufts are commonly asked by clients whether they should be adding fish oil to their cats’ daily food regimens because they’ve heard there are benefits to the oil’s omega-3 fatty aids. The answer: maybe. There are some diseases for which research suggests fish oils can augment treatment.

Like people, cats have taste receptors for sweet, sour, salty, and bitter, and a fifth taste, umami. Their sweet receptors are pretty insensitive (which is why cats aren’t big sugar cravers). But it turns out their receptors for umami — responsible for the savory flavors of foods like meat — are quite sensitive. No surprise, since cats need flesh food to survive.