In July 2018 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration released a statement titled, “FDA Investigating Potential Connection Between Diet and Cases of Canine Heart Disease.” As a retailer that specializes in pet nutrition supplies, both us and our customers have been looking for a better understanding of the reports and findings.

To learn more about the FDA’s report and the studies that trace back to the 1980’s, we reached out to Ryan Yamka, PhD. Dr. Yamka is a pet food nutritionist with an extensive background in pet food formulation and regulation.

In this episode of the Growing Home Podcast, Dr. Yamka breaks down the FDA’s statements, what facts we do know, and how we can make better decisions about our pet’s nutrition.

Heart Disease
-What is Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM)?
-How is DCM diagnosed?

Diet Related Dilated Cardiomyopathy
-Why did the FDA start looking into the association of canine nutrition and heart disease?
-What are the facts? What do we conclusively know about diet related DCM?
-How are pet nutrition products monitored by the FDA? Has the FDA taken any action against pet food manufacturers? Have there been any recalls regarding diet related cardiomyopathy?

Moving Forward
-What information and data should we pay attention to?
-How do we know the pet food we’re feeding is safe?
-What you should do to identify or rule out nutrition related health concerns?

Resources
Dr. Ryan Yamka’s Blog “Debunking Pet Food Myths and Misconceptions”: http://bit.ly/ryanyamkablog
FDA July 2018 Announcement: http://bit.ly/fdadcmjuly2018
FDA June 2019 Announcement: http://bit.ly/fdajune2019