BARNEVELD — Local veterinarian Diana Ostrander has worked with dogs of all kinds, including those on grain-free diets.
But a recent New York Times report linking grain-free dog foods with risks of heart disease spurred Ostrander, of Beaver Meadow Veterinary Clinic in Barneveld, to pursue her own research.
The Food and Drug Administration is investigating whether grain-free diets with peas, lentils, other legumes or potatoes as their main ingredients are connected to an increased risk of dilated cardiomyopathy, or D.C.M, which is a heart condition. According to the FDA, D.C.M. causes an enlarged heart and often leads to congestive heart failure.
The Times report also cites a veterinary nutritionist who explains how grains are important sources of protein that do not come with adverse health effects, except for rare instances where a dog has a grain allergy.
Intrigued, Ostrander said she evaluated the results of the 30 dogs that have had food allergy testing at her clinic in the last four years.
Surveying breeds ranging from big to small, from terriers to retrievers, the review found that three dogs had grain allergies — ones that Ostrander described as mild. The most common types of grains are wheat and corn.
From Ostrander’s research, the top food allergies were egg, lamb, soybean, barley, oat, rice, chicken, duck, potato, turkey, peas, rabbit, beef, pork and venison — in that order.
“When I did that, I was shocked. I said, ‘Wow, I guess my inclinations were right,’ on the fact that very, very, very few were actually allergic or have a sensitivity to corn or wheat,” she said. “They were the least amount on the whole study.”
Ostrander said she has seen the popularity of grain-free foods rise with the increasing popularity of gluten-free diets and the vilification of carbohydrates.
“The fad has started with bringing it from the human world to try to make it the same for our pets. Nobody has, in the veterinary world, until now figured out that it is not actually in their best interest to do grain-free,” Ostrander said. “The grain-free diets can lack some seriously important parts, which is what was recently researched and found out by the USDA and the FDA, and the New York Times wrote the article about that.”
The FDA was alerted to the potential link between D.C.M. and grain-free diets by CVCA, a coalition of veterinary cardiologists, according to the Times report.
The FDA said D.C.M. is typically seen in larger breeds, such as Great Danes and Newfoundlands, and is less common with small and medium breeds, except American and English cocker spaniels. The recent research, however, has found cases reported with other breeds including golden and Labrador retrievers and mixed breeds.
With the implications still under investigation, Ostrander — who is not a veterinary nutritionist — says people should follow the golden rule: Consult with your veterinarian to decide what food may be right for your individual pet.
Ostrander also recommended for people to look for foods that comply with nutrition standards set out by the Association of Animal Feed Control Officials (AAFCO).
“If you have all those veterinarians backing this food and looking at the research and the nutrition that’s involved — I mean for decades, these companies have been figuring out exactly what dogs need,” Ostrander said. “Now you get a company that’s only been around for five years. How much backing do they have from veterinarians? How much research has gone into these foods? What do they really know?
“This is what bothers me,” she continued, “Because they’re just trying to jump on the bandwagon of this fad, I feel, and there’s really not much research behind their specific food.”
Contact reporter Greg Mason at 315-792-5074 or follow him on Twitter (@OD_Mason).
