The safety of grain-free dog foods, especially those containing **pulse ingredients like peas and lentils**, has been under scrutiny since the **FDA’s 2018 alert** on possible links to **canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM)**. A recent study by **Chloe Quilliam and colleagues** evaluated whether pulse-based diets could induce sub-clinical cardiac changes in healthy dogs over a short 4-week period.
The researchers tested three diets on dogs: one grain-based (white rice flour), and two grain-free diets (wrinkled pea and whole lentil). After 28 days, dogs on the **wrinkled pea diet** showed significant cardiovascular changes including **reduced stroke volume and cardiac output**, **increased ventricular diameter**, and elevated levels of **NT-proBNP**, a biomarker associated with cardiac stress. These effects were not seen with the lentil-based diet.
Importantly, these dogs were **not genetically predisposed to DCM**, suggesting that diet alone can prompt heart function changes. Although **plasma taurine levels remained stable**, **methionine levels dropped**, and **digestibility** of nutrients decreased with pulse-based diets, likely due to higher fiber content.
This study provides compelling evidence that certain grain-free formulations—particularly those containing wrinkled peas—may **impair heart function** within just a month of feeding. The findings emphasize the need for veterinary supervision and ingredient scrutiny when selecting alternative diets for dogs.
Source: Chloe Quilliam, L. G. Reis, Y. Ren, Y. Ai, L. Weber. Published in PLOS ONE, Volume 18, on May 25, 2023.
