GRAY MUZZLE, BRIGHT MIND:NUTRITIONAL SCIENCE TO SUPPORT THE BRAINHEALTH OF ADULT AND SENIOR PETS
Veterinarians and pet owners alike are familiar withthat sinking feeling that comes when a beloved pet(or patient) transitions to “senior” status. A graying
muzzle is often the first sign that pet owners notice
as a sign of aging, but they may not be aware of(or may not want to acknowledge) the less visible
changes going on in their aging pet. A number ofadverse changes, some irreversible, accompany
normal aging in the brain. These changes may affectcognition – a pet’s ability to learn, solve problems,remember, and communicate.

Aging pets may develop cognitive decline – or themore extreme cognitive dysfunction – that can impact
their quality of life as well as that of their owners.
When the pet’s cognitive decline interferes with
their daily life or affects their social interactions, thebond between owner and pet can become strained
as the relationship changes from “best friend andcompanion” to that of a patient and caregiver. As aveterinarian, your focus is on keeping that pet healthy
and preserving that bond. But how can you slow
down an apparently inevitable process?

It’s no secret that aging affects the brain as well as the body, but theimpact of nutrition on brain health is often unrecognized or overlooked.
In fact, only 2% of veterinarians surveyed¹ were aware of the link between
brain health and nutrition. We don’t have the power to stop brain aging,but through nutrition we can target the risk factors that impact cognition.

Optimizing an aging pet’s nutrition provides veterinarians
and pet owners with a brain health-promoting tool withevery meal. Purina scientists have devoted more than adecade to studying the effects of nutrition on brain healthin pets, and what we’ve learned can help you better help
your aging patients.
The aging brain undergoes a number of anatomic, metabolic and vascularchanges. Oxidative stress, due to an increase in free radical production
coupled with reduced antioxidant production, contributes to age-related
cellular damage. By targeting some of these known causes of age-related
neurodegeneration, nutrition can support cognitive health.

A complete and balanced dietsupplemented with a blend offish oil (to provide omega-3 fatty
acids, which play neuroprotective
and anti-inﬂammatory roles),antioxidants (to fight freeradicals), B vitamins (to provide
necessary coenzymes andmetabolites) and arginine (tosupport blood ﬂow) improved
performance of aged dogs
and adult cats on a number ofvalidated cognitive tests2,3.

Aging reduces the brain’s ability to utilize glucose as an energy source, even when it’s readily available; given thatthe brain is particularly vulnerable to changes in its energy supply, the reduced glucose metabolism leads to energy
depletion and reduced brain cell function. By providing ketones from medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) as analternative energy source for the brain, we can target the metabolic changes that contribute to cognitive decline.
A study showed senior dogs fed a complete and balanced
diet containing MCTs made fewer errors on cognitive tests,
with improvement in memory beginning within 2 weeks,
and performed better than control diet-fed dogs as thecognitive tasks became more complex4.

In a double-blinded clinical trial, dogs withconfirmed cognitive dysfunction syndrome(CDS) who were fed a diet containing MCTs andbrain-protecting nutrients showed significant
improvement in as little as 30 days5.

MCTs AND CANINE IDIOPATHIC EPILEPSY
In addition to their cognitive-boosting abilities in aging pets, MCTs can help reduce seizures
in epileptic dogs. In a double-blinded, crossover, clinical trial in dogs with refractory epilepsy(continuation of seizure activity despite anti-epilepsy medications), 71% of dogs showed anoverall reduction in seizure frequency – including some dogs that became seizure-free on theMCT diet6. In conjunction with anti-epilepsy drug treatment, nutritional intervention

can help veterinarians better manage dogs with idiopathic epilepsy.

MCT

Q WHEN SHOULD YOU START TALKING TO
CLIENTS ABOUT THEIR PET’S BRAIN HEALTH?

Mild cognitive impairment has been detected in apparently normal dogs and cats as early as 6 and7.7 years, respectively7,8. That means the time to start the conversation is in adulthood, before the overt
signs of aging occur.
Include a nutritional assessment in every wellness exam, and use the information to help your clients 		
find the optimal diet for their pets.
Recommend regular physical activity – within the pet’s abilities – to support brain function andoverall health.
Provide recommendations for mental stimulation, such as food puzzles, new activities, and novel 			environments.
Aging pets don’t have to act old: Purina’s research has shown that early intervention through targeted nutrition canhelp support brain function in dogs and cats as they age.

REFERENCES:
1. “Global Veterinary Topics” quantitative research performed by Kynetec, January 2018.
2. Pan, Y., Kennedy, A. D., Jonsson, T. J., & Milgram N. W. (2018). Cognitive enhancement in old dogs from dietary
supplementation with a nutrient blend containing arginine, antioxidants, B vitamins and fish oil. British Journal of Nutrition,
119. doi: 10.1017/S0007114517003464
3. Pan, Y., Araujo, J. A., Burrows, J., de Rivera, C., Gore, A., Bhatnagar, S., & Milgram, N. W. (2013). Cognitive enhancement in
middle-aged and old cats with dietary supplementation with a nutrient blend containing fish oil, B vitamins, antioxidants
and arginine. British Journal of Nutrition, 110, 40–49. doi: 10.1017/S0007114512004771
4. Pan, Y., Larson, B., Araujo, J. A., Lau, W., de Rivera, C., Santana, R., Gore, A., & Milgram, N. W. (2010). Dietary
supplementation with medium-chain TAG has long-lasting cognition-enhancing effects in aged dogs. British Journal ofNutrition, 103, 1746–1754. doi: 10.1017/S0007114510000097
5. Pan, Y., Landsberg, G., Mougeot, I., Kelly, S., Xu, H., Bhatnagar, S., & Milgram, N. W. (2017). Efficacy of a therapeutic diet indogs with signs of cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CDS): a prospective, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical study.
Abstract N10: 2017 American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) forum. Available at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.
com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jvim.14778.
6. Law, T. H., Davies, E. S., Pan, Y., Zanghi, B., Want, E., & Volk, H. A. (2016). A randomised trial of a medium-chain TAG
diet as treatment for dogs with idiopathic epilepsy. British Journal of Nutrition, 114, 1438–1447. Erratum in: British Journal ofNutrition, (2016), 115, 1696.
7. Studzinski, C. M., Christie, L.-A., Araujo, J. A., Burnham, W. M., Head, E., Cotman, C. W., & Milgram, N. W. (2006).
Visuospatial function in the beagle dog: an early marker of cognitive decline in a model of human aging and dementia.
Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 86, 197-204.
8. Landsberg, G. M., Nichol, J., & Araujo, J. A. (2012). Cognitive dysfunction syndrome: a disease of canine and feline brainaging. Veterinary Clinics of North America Small Animal Practice, 42, 749-768. doi: 10.1016/j.cvsm.2012.04.003