Young Again was founded by Michael Massie in 1987 and the first pet food products were released in 1990. The brand was the first to offer grain-free cat food made with 50% meat-based protein, no plant proteins, and less than 6% starch/carbohydrates.
All Young Again formulas are built on a foundation of animal protein with minimal carbohydrate inclusions. Their foods contain relatively high levels of nucleotides. These are organic compounds best described as the building blocks of RNA and DNA.
The original 50/22 food is still low in carbohydrates with just around 6% carbs on a dry matter basis, but it differs from the ZERO recipe in the addition of a small amount of potato starch instead of guar gum. By pushing guar gum lower on the ingredient list, Young Again makes the 50/22 food a better option for those concerned that their cats might develop diarrhea due to too much soluble fiber.
This calorie-dense, protein-rich food bucks the senior food status quo with plenty of nourishing meat ingredients and virtually zero carbohydrate content. It has balanced levels of key minerals and highly-digestible protein, both features that may help to reduce kidney strain and help seniors stay spry.
Interestingly, Eisert proposed that cats, being hypercarnivores (i.e., small carnivorous mammals with a proportionally large brain), have a high brain glucose demand [48]. Using data from Kley et al. [44], Eisert estimated that the brain glucose demand of cats represents approximately 30% of gluconeogenesis in fasted cats [48]. The equivalent value for humans with a much larger brain is approximately 44% [48,49]. This high endogenous glucose demand of the brain as well as other obligate glucose-consuming tissues cannot be met by carbohydrates present in the natural prey-based diet including gut content, glycogen and glucose from glycerol [48] (Figure 4). Eisert noted that in cats a close agreement exists between the nitrogen loss predicted from brain glucose demand and the reported endogenous urinary nitrogen loss [48]. This explains a high capacity for de novo synthesis of glucose from amino acids and increased dietary protein and amino acid requirements in cats, which is discussed elsewhere [6].
Postprandial glucose concentration and insulin response depend on the type of carbohydrates added to the diet. Oral administration of 2 g glucose/kg body weight is followed by a prompt increase in glucose and insulin [141] (Table 3). Experimental diets containing up to 34%ME of glucose induced a steep rise in blood glucose 1 h after feeding (Table 3). Also, glucosuria was observed with consumption of diets containing simple sugars, especially glucose and galactose [142]. Still, in contrast to processed foods sold for human consumption, commercial cat food contains very limited amounts of simple sugars. Most of the carbohydrates found in commercial pet foods are in the form of complex carbohydrates, including starches and fibre [8]. Eleven hours after a single high-starch meal (NFE 43%ME), plasma glucose concentrations increased and remained high, while in dogs this increase occurred after 7 h. When cats and dogs were fed a low- (NFE 11%ME) or medium-starch (NFE 30%ME) diet, this postprandial rise in glucose did not occur [52]. It is worth noting that other researchers did not observe hyperglycaemia and glucosuria when cats were fed a high-starch diet [30,142,144]. Moreover, the postprandial glucose concentrations reported are far below the level found in untreated feline diabetes [139] and are also below the definition for post-meal hyperglycaemia in humans [140] (Table 3).
For kittens and young adult cats, Young Again has Original 50/22 Cat food. For mature cats, there is the Mature Health cat food. They also have the Zero TruCarnivore formulated for cats of all ages, from kittens to adults.
The Young Again Zero Mature health cat food contains less than 1% of carbohydrates and supports muscle maintenance for older pets. It promotes soft fur that you will want to keep touching and is highly digestible for a cleaner litter box. This cat food is not suitable for lactating or pregnant female cats.
Although all dry foods are too high in carbohydrates (except as noted above) and too low in water (causing many cats to suffer tremendously from extremely painful and life-threatening urethral obstructions and cystitis), please be aware that some canned foods (especially ones with gravy/sauce) also contain far too many carbohydrates making them very poor choices for cats.
Portion control has recently become even more important because as pet food manufacturers move toward making more low carbohydrate foods, this process is selecting for high fat diets. Keep in mind that we get our calories from 3 nutrient classes: proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. The percentage of calories that come from these 3 nutrients must add up to 100%. Therefore, if we lower the percentage of carbohydrates in the food to Cats are obligate carnivores and, as such, are uniquely adapted to consume a diet that is high in protein, contains a moderate amount of fat, and includes a very small amount (2-3 percent) of carbohydrates. Since nature designed them to ingest very few carbohydrates, cats lack many of the important enzymes that are necessary to process this type of food efficiently.
With the above information in mind, consider the fact that the carbohydrate level of most dry foods is between 35-50 percent with some of the lower quality dry foods being even higher.
Just noticed that Tiki Cats came out with a chicken-and-egg grain-free dry food called Born Carnivore. It seems to be about 10% more expensive than Wellness Core Original. The ingredient list is a little bit simpler and the nutritional analysis is slightly lower in carbs (therefore higher in protein and fat). I might try it with my next repeat delivery order from Petco.
I like Fromm as well. However, their formulations contain some form of fish or chicken which I am trying to avoid. I believe their dry food might be slightly higher in the carb count, but you should double check. Really great company. I wish they would add some novel proteins to their line. Overall, good choice!
Can you please review the new formula of Wysong Epigen 90? My cat was very happy on Epigen 90 along with her wet food. But they recently changed the formula. Although the carb % remains the same, some of the ingredients look questionable and pple have been saying their cats are getting sick from it. My cat has a very sensitive stomach and is allergic to fish. Epigen 90 was the perfect choice. But with all complaints, I have been debating whether to have her try the new formula. She is currently on wet food only but is losing weight bc she prefers the dry. I would appreciate any advice you can provide. Thank you!
Dogs should be powered by fat and protein - not carbs. Inspired by years of research on optimal canine nutrition by the non-profit group, KetoPet, we created a very low carb, ketogenic dog food so that all dogs can enjoy the benefits of optimal nutrition.
We are proud to support KetoPet through food donations and a portion of every sale. We hope that our success can help dogs everywhere live happier lives. Click below to learn more about KetoPet and how we support their important mission.
Feline obesity is a major reason why cat parents consider switching food. The natural feline diet should offer over 50% proteins, about 20% fats, and no more than 3% carbohydrates. Cat food with fewer proteins and more fats and carbs will create a calorie surplus, making cats fat. Overweight kitties should be on a calorie deficit diet to get lean, which means switching to low-fat and low-carb food.
The single biggest mistake I see people make time and again is to say that their cat "won't touch" the new food and then panic and fill up the bowl with dry food. In many cases, it is simply not that easy to get cats off of dry food.
Cats do not need food available at all times. It really is okay for them to experience a hunger paint! That said, it was very hard for me to listen to my cats begging for food even though I was strong in my conviction that I was heading them in the best direction for optimal health. It truly was a stressful time for me and then - actually, I think it was harder on me! This is where many people fail and just give in and fill up the dry food bowl. There were a few times when I had to call my 'sponsor' and was instructed to "just leave the house if you can't take looking into those eyes!" I left the house. Those pitiful little cries of "I have not had food for two WHOLE hours!" were hard to take. But lo and behold, they were just fine when I returned. Not one cat had died from hunger.
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