Should Cats Stop Eating Fish?

One of the things I do regularly is research about nutrition for dogs and cats on a daily basis. The most significant topic I've seen lately is the concern for our cats that are eating fish. It appears fish can have toxic affects for them due to the increased iodine and PBDE's. PBDE comes from fire retardant materials and can be in our houses everywhere. This material is used in textiles, electronics,and furniture. From carpet to dust in the air, the solution appears to be for us to use vacuums with hepa filters. Another solution is to remove any foam article that appears to be breaking down. This can carry the contaminated household dust to our pets. Side effects have been shown in increased thyroid disease. 

The Stockholm University completed a study with commercial canned and kibble cat food. Their conclusions show that PBDE can be found in cat food.

For those of you wondering how these chemicals wind up in fish-flavored cat food, Dr. Jean Hofve of Little Big Cat explains:

Fish-based foods are even worse, because marine organisms produce PDBEs naturally and can bioaccumulate up the food chain to high levels in fish; this compounds the exposure cats get from fabrics and dust.

Predatory fish at the top of the food chain, such as tuna and salmon, may contain very elevated levels of heavy met
als (including mercury) as well as PCBs, pesticides, and other toxins. Tilefish (listed on pet food labels as 'ocean whitefish') are among the worst contaminated, along with king mackerel, shark, and swordfish.

In an article written by Dr. Karen Becker, she suggests the following to help the epidemic control of hyperthyroidism in felines  

Ridding your environment of flame retardant chemicals
Providing an organic pet bed
Feeding a nutritionally balanced, fresh, species-appropriate diet to control iodine levels in your cat's food, since iodine has also been linked to hyperthyroidism
Avoid feeding your cat a fish-based diet, since seafood is a very rich source of iodine, and cats aren't designed to process a lot of iodine
Avoid feeding soy products to your kitty, as they have also been linked to thyroid damage
I also recommend checking your cat's thyroid levels annually after the age of 10.

This article can be found on healthypets.mercola.com

If you have any questions or concerns about your cats food, please come in and talk to us at Furry Friends Inc.

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