Phosphorus level in cat food for healthy cats

Szewan

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Sorry if I sound paranoid, but I was reading a report that says some studies show eating high phosphorous cat food could make cats more prong to kidney disease. Does anybody monitor phosphorus intake even if your cat is healthy with no kidney disease? My adopted cat has no health issues 🤞but he’s now about (approx) a bit over 8 years old so I want to pay more attention to his diet. I’ve been feeding him good quality wet food with high protein but then high protein is usually high phosphorous as well? I guess you need to strike a balance?
Again sorry if I sound paranoid about this.
 

FeebysOwner

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Hi. I can't answer your real question. But, I do know that you will be hard pressed to find phosphorus levels listed on most cat foods. You can use the chart provided by the felinecrf.org (Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Diet and Nutrition Overview (felinecrf.org)) to see what foods contain the least amount of phosphorus according to the data collected.
I am not sure you can automatically assume that high protein equals high phosphorus. Your best bet at your cat's age is to start ensuring that he gets annual check ups that include CBC/Chemistry blood profiles, as well as a urinalysis, so you can start to track any changes over time. The quicker changes are detected, and addressed as needed, the better for your cat overall.

You are not being paranoid, just proactive! I think we will all see phosphorus being noted more by the cat food companies, as this is becoming a bigger focus than it once was!
 
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Szewan

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thank you!
for those who are interested - here is the online excerpt of the studies on phosphorous in cat’s diet: Animal nutrition: Excess phosphorus damages the kidney

Hi. I can't answer your real question. But, I do know that you will be hard pressed to find phosphorus levels listed on most cat foods. You can use the chart provided by the felinecrf.org (Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Kidney Disease - Diet and Nutrition Overview (felinecrf.org)) to see what foods contain the least amount of phosphorus according to the data collected.
I am not sure you can automatically assume that high protein equals high phosphorus. Your best bet at your cat's age is to start ensuring that he gets annual check ups that include CBC/Chemistry blood profiles, as well as a urinalysis, so you can start to track any changes over time. The quicker changes are detected, and addressed as needed, the better for your cat overall.

You are not being paranoid, just proactive! I think we will all see phosphorus being noted more by the cat food companies, as this is becoming a bigger focus than it once was!
 

JulietteTruong

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not paranoid, I think. My Juli turns 8 next month, and I have also been thinking a lot about doing whatever I can to prevent future issues in her older age. Food is a huge deal I feel, especially for indoor cats because what they eat is completely dependent on what we as owners choose to feed them. That’s a huge responsibility! Sometimes I get a bit overwhelmed tbh. It’s tough having to work within the limits of your budget as well as what is available to you. And there is no perfect food, and then each cat has their own damn preferences too 😏. So yeah, you are not alone in your thinking.
 
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Szewan

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totally how I feel too! 🙌

not paranoid, I think. My Juli turns 8 next month, and I have also been thinking a lot about doing whatever I can to prevent future issues in her older age. Food is a huge deal I feel, especially for indoor cats because what they eat is completely dependent on what we as owners choose to feed them. That’s a huge responsibility! Sometimes I get a bit overwhelmed tbh. It’s tough having to work within the limits of your budget as well as what is available to you. And there is no perfect food, and then each cat has their own damn preferences too 😏. So yeah, you are not alone in your thinking.
 

MissClouseau

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Does anybody monitor phosphorus intake even if your cat is healthy with no kidney disease?
I try to do it with dry food and treats, as wet foods usually don’t publish phosphorus levels. IME so far the phosphorus difference between different, popular dry foods is about 1-3%. I try to do stay on the lower side of it when possible. If the wet food is like 70% or more water, I doubt its phosphorus level would make a significant difference for a cat who doesn’t have kidney disease.

I’ve been feeding him good quality wet food with high protein but then high protein is usually high phosphorous as well?
Yes. The past April my cat had a blood creatinine level of 2,0mg which almost made the vet misdiagnose her with kidney disease. She was eating Acana Wild Prairie (high protein) and to cheer her up I gave some extra boiled turkey breast the day before the vet visit. I cut down the meat and two weeks later her creatinine was measured 1,4mg. She was still on Acana then. It made me question whether it’s a good idea to give more than one high protein anything to be honest.

That said in 2019 her creatinine was 1,37mg and she’s been on Acana as her dry food until May 2021. She also gets wet food every day. Anyway, there is only 0,03mg difference between the two which maybe nothing as these numbers are not sensitive enough to make 0,03mg significant.

In my opinion it’s the best to have more than one food if possible. If one is doing any harm at least it will be half harmful if the rest of the diet is something else.
 
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Szewan

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I think I am going to check Pancake’s food. He’s 8yo+ and healthy now so I don’t think I need to go super low on phosphorous to give up on protein, but I would try to balance - say if some of his food is on the high end on phosphorous I’d make sure I rotate with something that’s on the lower end. FeebysOwner FeebysOwner above shared a link to some cat food nutrition database online - would be good reference 👍

I try to do it with dry food and treats, as wet foods usually don’t publish phosphorus levels. IME so far the phosphorus difference between different, popular dry foods is about 1-3%. I try to do stay on the lower side of it when possible. If the wet food is like 70% or more water, I doubt its phosphorus level would make a significant difference for a cat who doesn’t have kidney disease.



Yes. The past April my cat had a blood creatinine level of 2,0mg which almost made the vet misdiagnose her with kidney disease. She was eating Acana Wild Prairie (high protein) and to cheer her up I gave some extra boiled turkey breast the day before the vet visit. I cut down the meat and two weeks later her creatinine was measured 1,4mg. She was still on Acana then. It made me question whether it’s a good idea to give more than one high protein anything to be honest.



That said in 2019 her creatinine was 1,37mg and she’s been on Acana as her dry food until May 2021. She also gets wet food every day. Anyway, there is only 0,03mg difference between the two which maybe nothing as these numbers are not sensitive enough to make 0,03mg significant.

In my opinion it’s the best to have more than one food if possible. If one is doing any harm at least it will be half harmful if the rest of the diet is something else.
 
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