BOOGEYMAN INGREDIENTS

Anything, natural or not, can be toxic ("bad") in sufficient doses. Anything can be allergenic if fed relentlessly. So it is easy to make a case for demonizing any ingredient one chooses. But most such "bad" ingredients are not that at all if consumed at practical levels and in variety.

Attempting to avoid the endless parade of boogeyman ingredients does not achieve the best pet food. There are horror stories of soy, corn, by-products, meat meals, wheat, grains, saponins, fat, vitamin and mineral fortifiers... and on and on. These stories begin with half-truths, grow to axiomatic law by mere repetition, are legitimized by unqualified advisors, reviewers, and rankers, and seized upon by producers pandering to the confused and misled public.

There is no magical "good" ingredient to be fed at every meal. Anything can be "bad," but any natural food fed in variety can be "good" and even prevent both toxicity and allergy.

Thought for the day: Facts do not require belief. And whereas beliefs can live comfortably without evidence at all, facts depend on evidence.

Phrase for the day: 'saturated fats' - fats in which all the carbons are saturated with hydrogens and there are no double bonds. These are the most stable forms of fats and are found in both animals and plants. They are not a dangerous food element.