"We see that more and more people are feeding (cats and dogs) this kind
of product and we know that meat is infected with bacteria and
parasites," co-author of the new research, Paul Overgaauw, told the Guardian.
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Researchers found that 23% of raw meat pet food products contained a specific type of E coli that can cause renal failure in humans and 80% had antibiotic-resistant E coli.(Kolbz/Getty Images) |
A recent trend in feeding pets raw meat, bones and organs in diets that
are considered more "natural" by some owners, is receiving heavy
criticism from experts who say these "food" sources could be dangerous
for both animal and human alike, the Guardian reported.
Scientists are saying that claims made in favor of this kind of diet —
like that it gets around the issue of additives in processed foods and
can combat allergy and skin problems — are unfounded and can instead
lead to dental and gut injuries, growth problems and malnutrition.
"We don't have any scientific evidence to support those claims,"
emergency and critical care professor Daniel Chan, who was not involved
with the research, told the news site.
The Netherlands-based study
analyzed 35 frozen, raw meat pet foods, looking for evidence of
contaminants like salmonella, listeria and E coli. They found that 23%
of the products contained a specific type of E coli that can cause renal
failure in humans and 80% had antibiotic-resistant E coli. More than
half of the food had listeria species present, 20% contained salmonella
and 23% had sarcocystis — a parasite that causes anorexia, nausea and
abdominal pain.
Researchers said these
raw meat foods should be labeled to reflect their potential risks,
which include cross contamination with human foods or pathogen shedding
by pets — both of which could be harmful to people. The study also
stressed that there is no difference in the possible danger between
packaged, frozen meats and raw food prepared at home.
"The most concerning from our public health point of view is that they
are finding multi-drug resistant bacteria in the food source," Dr. Chan said.
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