New food based treatment for feline hyperthyroidism

wonderful news!!!!! Thank you for sharing!!!!!!!!!! Will get this going for Gracie on her next consult - hopefully this will be better than Methimazole

Please be aware that this food has not only not been tested, there are many with active concerns about both the efficacy and safety of this product:

Is Hill's y/d a Nutritious Diet for Hyperthyroid Cats?

Does Iodine Deficiency Cause Thyroid Disease in Cats?

New Diet Replaces Drugs for Hyperthyroid Cats

"What the Veterinary community is saying... When asked why they were hanging back, they cited a lack of long term testing and questions about a largely untried diet that will replace a medication that has a long history of efficacy, low incidence of side effects, and is inexpensive."

CatsWalk Newsletter August 2011, New “Thyroid Diet†for Cats

Regards.

AC

So, tested by who? By the FDA? Sure, because they will not test it for sure. Tested by Hills? You think that Hills would put a food in the market, after 10 years developing it, claiming it is clinically proven (which would be illegal without testing, of course), if the food hadn't been tested?
I see that the links you posted are geared towards a "natural diet"... Like... Raw? I don't think any Hill's diet would fit their standards, yet, there is no doubt in my mind that they work. I had a cat whose life (and it was not Bugsy is was Hope) was saved by it, and I will stand by that they DO work for what is intended.
I am absolutely bringing this option to my vet. Methimazole is a strong drug, and I am not happy with the side effects/results Gracie is having. There are no other alternatives in front of me right now - aside from surgery or radioactive iodine treatment, which now I can not afford.
If Gracie was absolutely wonderful of Methimazole, I would not change - but she is not. The medicine is not working well for her... So yes, I am SO glad that there is an option for her, even though the ingredients don't look exceptional on the theory book.
Diets from Hills have worked greatly for me on the past... Even when the ingredients were "subpar".
This is an option I am willing to try.... Diet to me, is better than a drug - especially when a drug is causing side-effects and it is not looking like I should change the dosage.

The first two links are from a veterinarian-geared endocrinology blog, with nearly two dozen citations per post. None of Dr. Peterson's posts have anything to do with raw diets. Since he writes from an endocrinology perspective, I do not, in fact, have any idea what his views on raw foods are.

The second link is from a Yahoo news site and couldn't be any further from a "buy raw!" cheer leader than if I'd spent hours scouring for one.

And the third is from Dr. Jean Hofve's site, LittleBigCat.com.

You can read the information to educate yourself. Or not. *shrug*

Despite your dismissal of this information as a thinly-veiled raw push attempt rather than the help it was meant to be, I wish you and your cats the best, Carolina.

AC

I was going to say that this didn't make any sense..

Coming from someone with thyroid disease, simply reducing or increasing iodine can not fix thyroid issues. Deficiency of iodine can definitely cause problems though.

This is what did it for me: "According to Hills other cats in the household will suffer no ill effects from eating this food."
How can a food that has levels of iodine way below normal requirements, meant for hyperthyroid cats, possibly be safe for euthyroid cats???

Auntie, I said the links, not you were raw biased, and IMHO, they are. # 1 is, IMHO. Littlebigcat - first of all - wrong data. Second, they will always trash Hills, no matter what. Third, are you trying to tell me they are not biased towards a natural diet?
The only one that is unbiased you posted, is the yahoo one. Yes, I read it.
Yes, I DO have a cat with HT. Yes, this cat is not doing well on Methimazole. Yes, the dose IS correct. NO I do NOT have other options.... So this MIGHT be an option if my vet finds it appropriate and I will discuss it with her.
As I said, if Gracie was doing great on Methimazole, I would not change a thing - but she isn't. You don't seem to understand that - this gives me an option. If you believe I care or not, well.... fine..... I do. Can't change your opinion there. But when I see patches of her fur falling, the big pees, the water consumption, and I know I can't change the dosage because at the same time her behavior checks in, and her weight does too - listen - I need options for her. Methimazole is good, but it is not fantastic, and it doesn't work wonders for every cat - it is not for her.
Every cat is one cat, and I am looking for options for mine, and glad to have some.

Carolina, I know you are a rational person; how does suggesting 50%+ protein and 5-10% carbs automatically equal raw? The author even discusses 'by-products' which is a word used only for commercial canned or dry foods. The article is very professional, talking about protein catabolism and muscle wasting and using that as reasons why more protein is needed in a hyperthyroid cat: what they use up the most they need much more of.

Nobody is saying you don't care. Nobody. We are saying that this food seems too risky and unhealthy for cats that are already struggling. We are making sure that passers-by get both sides of the story, not just the opinion by one vet that this food is great and is a cure-all for hyperthyroidism.

Minka, Auntie - Let me say this: I will talk to my vet. Let me repeat this: Gracie is not doing well with Methimazole. Let me say this for the third time: This might be an option for her - which I did not have up to now.
Again, for the last time - this will be my vet's decision, if she finds it appropriate.

Wow.

Not sure why on earth you've take my post as an attack on some decision of yours, but let me assure you that I posted this information as a general "head's up" for anyone interested in this product. To be perfectly frank, it matters not one bit to me what you do with your cats. I wish you the best (Lord knows I've said that enough times), but I've no vested interest in what you, in particular, do or don't do with your furchildren. *shrug*

Heck, I don't even have an interest in this particular product, beyond sharing what I've heard about it; and that ends my interest in this thread.

AC

That's fine. I have not addressed what you should or shouldn't do. You will do what you want. But if I (or anyone else) decides to post articles showing why a product might not be safe, there is no need to point fingers and say they are just being raw biased.

Oh Brother... this is just not working
No Auntie, I did not take your posts as an attack on me, otherwise I would flagged them - which I didn't.
I did not dismiss the information you sent me either, even though I didn't agree with it.
I think your comment was rather unfair "Despite your dismissal of this information as a thinly-veiled raw push attempt rather than the help it was meant to be".
I am not going to discuss this with you or Minka anymore, as we will get nowhere. Since you posted there you don't care about what I do with my babies or not, I am going to end this here. I just want you to think about something:
With Bugsy, I went through a year of treatment, dozens my goodness, soooo many treatments, natural and drugs until we found his sweet spot - the treatment that works for him.
For hyper-T, there is one - one drug in the market - up to this food, one - one treatment - if your cat didn't do well (like mine)... too bad. One.
Think about that.
I am done.

Carolina....I have no Hyper-T kitties (yet, at least and thankfully!)...but I do try to get a handle on some of the very common conditions which, chances are, I'll encounter down the road. When I read that "one only drug", I thought, no, that doesn't sound right. I was pretty sure I had seen info on more, so I went looking.

The CRF site I'm familiar with has a section on Hyper-T, and here is the reference to that other drug http://www.felinecrf.org/related_dis...tm#carbimazole

Hope that helps

Have you tried out/considered this resource http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/feline-hyperT/

Thank you for this info... even though this drug does transforms into methimazole in the body.... It might be another choice. Not sure why it is so rare here in the US though - I will talk to my vet about both - Thanks!!

catsallover, I also did some looking around after I read your post a few days ago, as I had not heard of this particular "formula".

Now, I'm no fan of Hill's products for long term use, but I do see a real value in (at least) some of them for short term "fixes" when stabilizing a cat is top priority. (a/d in particular)

So, just from that point of view and, unless there were no other reasonably-accomplished therapy, I would not be suggesting this one (and, it is for long term use, by definition).

I read a piece by the same Dr. Peterson which quite disturbed me. This criticism goes to the very heart of what makes a cat a cat.

Perhaps a read of the article should be mandatory for any Vet who recommends the y/d....we can be sure that Hill's won't be advertising this aspect.

One thing for sure, for anyone considering using it, the dry product should be a no-no..


http://endocrinevet.blogspot.com/201...oid-diets.html

Gracie is starting on this new diet today - Methimazole is causing severe side effects (it does in a small percentage of cats) - past and current history indicates bone marrow damage, and she now has hepatic lipidosis (beginning stages) Has had before too. Carbimazole has some of the same side effects on the bone marrow, so she would not benefit from it. Even though there are no long term studies on this diet, Gracie's long term prognosis on Thyroid drugs is not good. Here is where IMHO decisions need to be made considered the individual cat. Severe side effects like gracie's specially combined, are very very rare.... But happens.... At this point, I am very glad to have this diet to put her on.
One of the concerns with the diet is that young cats could get on it - this is not a problem here, as Gracie is isolated - she is the only one who can get to it. On the same token, she can ONLY eat this, no treats, no hairball treats, nothing. So, again, it's great that she is Isolated.
Since she is apparently the first cat here on TCS to go on the diet, I will keep posting her Senior profiles and T-4 tests, which we will run very very often to monitor these numbers that are all out of whack right now.
Here is what is going on with her http://www.thecatsite.com/t/238362/gracie-needs-vibes#post_3142563
Please, please no flaming, I am dealing with a lot here, she is very sick, and I am just doing what me and my vet agree to be the best for my little old lady. She can not be on drugs, and if this doesn't work, surgery or iodine radioactive treatment will be the next step for her.....

Carolina,

 

I haven't found much online from others who have actually tried y/d, so I felt compelled to respond.  My kitty Tina was on methimazole for hyperthyroid.  Her T4 was controlled, but she continued to lose weight.  This sweet 13 year old cat who once weighed 18 pounds (yes, I know, that's a bit much) was under 8 pounds.  I was really worried, always trying to prepare myself for the likelihood that she wouldn't be around much longer.  The vet mentioned a new diet coming out, & I was ready to give it a try as soon as it was released.  The vet only got the dry y/d in at first, so that's what I used, even though everyone recommends going with the canned food. Tina loved the food right away, & voluntarily switched over from canned c/d without having to phase it out.  We gradually decreased the methimazole over three weeks. Tina started looking better right away.  The bony look went away, & she gradually started looking good again.  Her activity level seemed perky but normal.  She basically seemed like her old self from before the hyperthyroidism.   After four weeks totally off of methimazole, I took her in for T4 test and complete blood panel & held my breath awaiting the results.  Everything was normal!!! 

 

This might not work for every cat, but I am very, very happy to have my Tina "back" again.  The vet was quite excited about the results, and the weight gain (about 1-1/2 pounds).  Whether this will work long-term or not I don't know, but at least I feel as though Tina now is robust enough to be able to deal better with whatever comes next.  I hope you have the same happy results with Gracie!

I didn't know about this food, wow, it is good to know.  My cats don't have a thyroid problem, but you never know and i like to learn. I'm also glad Carolina posted info about the Methimazole and  the side effects it caused Gracie.

 

Since here in PR the vet care is not good, I like to know all this things so I can help my kitties the best way I can. 

 

Carolina, I wanted to ask you, when Gracie was first having Thyroid problems, what were her symptons.

 

I hope she does well on her new diet, you really had no other option if the medicine wasn't working.

 

Tammy 

Edited by Momto4kitties - 12/11/11 at 9:03am

 

Welcome to the forum, tinasmom.....it's heartening to read about "miraculous" cures!

 

I wonder if Tina wasn't getting sufficient calories prior to starting the y/d.....that is, perhaps she was getting less caloric intake than the amount in the y/d. According to the latest article from the Veterinary Endocrinologist, Dr. Mark Peterson who is referenced earlier in this thread, that would be the only explanation for Tina's weight gain.

 

Quote:

I'm sure you'll be monitoring her weight as the days pass. Please keep us updated, especially in light of Dr. Peterson's findings.

 

I have a background in medicine so I'll throw in my own advice.

 

This is not a product that should be given to cats. Please take the example of the author who tried this approach and the results are documented in her blog. There is no reason to think that a low Iodine diet will treat hyperthyroidism. The mere idea is ridiculous and vets promoting this sort of treatment are lacking theoretical understanding of medicine. 

Just because it sounds like it should work, does not mean it works. Thats what studies are for. The only studies claimed by this company are by the manufacture themselves and I couldn't even find the studies in the journal they were purportedly published in. This is a red flag.

 

Hyperthyroid cats have thyroids that naturally are put in 5th-gear, so to speak, on thyroid hormone production. If you deplete iodine enough, they will simply deplete stores and become hypOthyroid. This has its own issues. There is no in-between euthyroid state in such a situation. 

 

Unfortunately, hyperthyroidism is an illness with few options. That does not mean we should reach for simple answers. The reason drugs have side effects is because they are actually doing something. Having a sudden perfect cure, by a simple diet, that resolves the need for medications and their side effects is another red flag. Its too simple. Snake oil peddling. Real drugs have real side effects because they do real things. 

 

The best option in dealing with hyperthyroidism is not the cheapest but is radioactive iodine ablation of the thyroid, destroying the gland itself, and giving thyroid hormone in pill form to the cat for the rest of its life with frequent visits to the vet to ensure the levels are good. The result you want to follow is not the T4 level, its the TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) level because it is common for the free T4 and total T4 to be normal, while the TSH is extremely low because the brain is trying to stop 'stimulating the thyroid' to produce hormone. It doesn't need normal T4 levels in such a situation, it needs low T4 levels because its been drowining in thyroid hormone and needs a break from it.... In any case, it is easier to treat hypOthyroidism than hyperthyroidism so radioiodine ablation is the best long term option. 

 

The other option is methimazole which has its side effects. 

 

 

But in any case, this diet is an absurd idea and I would stay away from vets that recommend this... no matter how warm and nice they are

 

 

Hi Medicate, none of my cats have thyroid problems, but I like to keep informed because my Lucas has lupus and I want to be prepared for any complication he might have in the future.  What you posted is very informative and I really apreciate it.

 

Tammy