If Fido or Fluffy need to shed a few pounds, researchers have a new advancement to speed up your dog or cat's metabolism.
LSU Pennington Biomedical scientists say they have developed and patented technology that lets your pet eat the same amount of food and still lose weight.
One of the inventors, Dr. Frank Greenway, says a restriction of an amino acid in food results in a pet burning more calories and reducing body fat.
“It can increase the lifespan to the animals and increase their health,” Greenway explained.
He says it works by restricting.
“Low values of methonine stimulate a hormone called FGF21 and that hormone increases... metabolism.”
The result is your pet eating the same amount, but burning more calories and loosing weight.
It is estimated that over 50 million dogs and 56 million cats are overweight or have obesity in the United States.
The pet food is not yet commercially available and it will be even longer before we could see this same advancement in food for humans.
“Unlike humans who like a great deal of variety in their diet, companion animals are very happy to eat the same food everyday, so this seems to be the place to start,” said Greenway.
Greenway says in the future if the food becomes more palatable, this same technology could be used in food for humans.
