Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Nutraceutical diet lowers stress in dogs with anxiety and behavior
By Sechi, S et al.·Published in The Veterinary record·2017·Department of Veterinary Medicine, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Effects in dogs with behavioural disorders of a commercial nutraceutical diet on stress and neuroendocrine parameters.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 69 dogs with anxiety and stress-related behavioral issues were given either a regular diet or a special nutraceutical diet for 45 days to see how it affected their mood and stress levels. The dogs on the nutraceutical diet showed improvements, with higher levels of feel-good chemicals like serotonin and dopamine, and lower levels of stress hormones like cortisol. This suggests that changing a dog's diet can help manage anxiety and improve their overall well-being.
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Abstract
The well-being of dogs can be affected by changes in human lifestyle, eating habits and increased stressors that lead to behavioural disorders including fear, hyperactivity and anxiety, followed by negative affective moods and poor welfare. This randomised, controlled clinical evaluation involved 69 dogs, 38 males and 31 females, of different breeds, with behavioural disorders related to anxiety and chronic stress. They were fed a control diet or a nutraceutical diet (ND group) for 45 days. Neuroendocrine (serotonin, dopamine, β-endorphins, noradrenaline and cortisol) and stress (derivatives of reactive oxygen metabolites (dROMs) and biological antioxidant potential (BAP)) parameters related to behavioural disorders were evaluated at the beginning and end of the study period. Results showed a significant increase in serotonin, dopamine and β-endorphins plasma concentrations (*P<0.05, *P<0.05 and **P<0.01, respectively) and a significant decrease in noradrenaline and cortisol plasma concentrations in the ND group (*P<0.05). dROMs significantly decreased in the ND group (*P<0.05) while BAP was not affected. This study demonstrated for the first time that a specific diet significantly and positively affected neuroendocrine parameters and dROMs. These results open significant perspectives concerning the use of diet and nutraceuticals in the treatment of behavioural disorders.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27885066/