Pinky -Triglycerides and insulin resistance?

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ourboypinky

Member Since 2012
Our Pinky, 11 years old neutered male, part Burmese, currently on 2 to 2 1/2 units Prozinc 2x daily.
After a few scary hypos administering 3 to 3 1/2 units 2X daily, we are wondering about the role of low fat in diet for our cat. We had fed Pinky seafood on the two documented hypo nights, a change from the usual fancy feast beef or chicken "classics." His diet also consists of "Young Again Zero Carb" dry food, the ratio of dry to wet food being 2:1.
While striving to lower carb intake, I have noticed that the fat content in the "Young Again" dry food is quite high, i.e per guaranteed analysis: Protein 55%, Crude Fat 24%, Fiber 5%, Moisture 10%. I have read that in the Burmese breed, there exists the issue of insulin resistance, stemming from that breeds high levels of recirculating trigycerides that remain in the animals bloodstream for some time after eating. These triglycerides block the effect of insulin in regulating glucose. After successfully treating Pinky with 1 to 2 units Prozinc 2X daily for some time with albeit higher BG numbers (in an effort to eliminate hypos), we are now finding that these higher 2 to 2 1/2 unit 2X daily injections are not working. We were shocked to find nadirs climb from the low 200's into the low 400's yesterday and today.
I am seeking to work a low fat food into his diet while carefully checking BG numbers this weekend. I am looking at "Weruva Paw Lickin' Chicken" with a fat content by analysis of 1.4%. Again, this will be done slowly and with careful monitoring of his BG numbers.
Does anyone on the board have any input on the role of fat, and specifically triglycerides, on the health of the diebetic feline? Anything on the "Weruva" brand of wet food? Suitability for use in a diabetic diet?
Pinky has feline FIV and a minor heart murmur. He has recently recovered from a UTI (e coli) with the aid of antibiotics. He's had a tough life, is spoiled rotten and we love him to death. TIA for any help or advice on this topic.

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Weruva Paw Lickin' Chicken:
Ingredients:

Chicken (Boneless, Skinless, White Breast Meat), Water Sufficient For Processing Balance, Potato Starch, Sunflower Seed Oil, Dicalcium Phosphate, Xanthan Gum, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Vitamin E Supplement, Zinc Sulfate, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Nicotinic Acid (Vitamin B3), Ferrous Sulfate, Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Potassium Iodide, Manganese Sulfate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Copper Sulfate, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Folic Acid, Vitamin B12 Supplement.


Analysis:

Moisture (max)85.00%
Crude Protein (min)10.00%
Ash (max)1.20%
Crude Fat (min)1.40%
Crude Fiber (max)0.50%
Calcium (max)0.20%
Magnesium (max)0.01%
Phosphorus (max)0.17%

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Young Again Cat Food Ingredients:
GUARANTEED ANALYSIS: Crude Protein (min) 55%, Crude Fat/Oil (min) 24%,
Crude Fiber (max) 4%, Moisture (max) 10%.

CALORIE CONTENT: 4,070 kcals/kg (590 kcals/cup) Calculated Metabolizable
energy.

INGREDIENTS: Chicken Meal, Pork Protein Concentrate, Poultry Fat (Preserved
with Rosemary Extract, Mixed Tocopherols and Ascorbic Acid), Soya Oil, Fish
Oil, Herring Meal, Cellulose, (Source of Dietary Fiber), Fructooligosaccharides,
Natural chicken flavor, L-Lysine, Guar Gum, DL Methionine, Coconut oil, Yeast, Yeast extract,
Calcium carbonate, Taurine, L-Threonine, L-Tryptophan, Salt, Dicalcium Phosphate,
L-Carnitine, Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product Dehydrated,
Enterococcus Faecium Fermentation Product Dehydrated, Dried Bacillus Subtilis
Fermentation Extract, Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Fermentation Product Dehydrated,
Mixed Tocopherols, Rosemary Extract, Zinc Proteinate, Yucca Schidigera Extract,
Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Magnesium Proteinate, Betaine Anhydrous,
Ferrous Sulfate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Niacinamide, D-Biotin, Manganous
Sulfate, Vitamin A Acetate, Copper Proteinate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Folic Acid,
Riboflavin, Calcium Pantothenate, Sodium Selenite, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride,
Calcium Iodate, Calcium Propionate, N, N-Dimethylglycine (DMG) HCI, D-Activated Animal Sterol (Source of Vitamin D3), Cobalt Sulfate.
 
Are you home testing? It's pretty much the best way to know if your cat's in need of insulin and how much.

Food does make an incredible difference in your cat's needs, but it all comes down to testing BG at home.

If you are already home testing, can you please post what meter you are using, and what numbers you have from your testing.

If you are not home testing, most people here can help you start, just pick up a Blood glucose meter from the pharmacy, Relion is economical if you are in the US, or any of the other meters except the ones with TRUE in the name or the FreeStyle meters as they are not reliable and give false readings.

By home testing, you will not have the worry of any hypo events.

ETA: about the feeding, numbers can be manipulated by how much of what is fed when. I don't think fat is going to be a major influence with BG... carbs yes. Check on Binky's list for foods and see if the ones you are feeding are listed... you may be going for lower fat, but ending with higher carbs.

Also, different cats respond differently to the various insulins. As I am not familiar with the one you are using, you could try to post in the PZI forum as they can give you some good tips to play around with foods and maybe cut down on the extreme numbers you mention.
 
The "guaranteed analysis" is pretty much worthless, as those are maximums and minimums - totally imprecise.

What you really want to know is percent of calories from protein, fat, and carbohydrate respectively, aiming for less than 10% carbohydrate calories. To understand this better, pop over to Binky's Page and read how the values on the spreadsheets were constructed.

There are an estimated 3.5 calories per gram for protein and carbohydrate, and an estimated 8.5 calories per gram for fat.
Thus for 55% protein (by weight), in 100 grams of the food, there will be 55 grams of protein ... but you must multiply by 3.5 to get the calories from protein (192.5).
For Crude Fat 24%, in 100 grams of food, there will by 24 grams of fat; multiply by 8.5 and you get (out the calculator to arrive at) 204 calories from fat.

And if you're concerned about fat content, look for foods on the lists which have higher values of protein vs fat. They often contain turkey. Alternatively, per Cat Info, you may supplement the canned food with straight lean meat. Read that site for details.
 
Thanks for the replies BJM and Blue,

Yes we home test. Here is a curve from about three weeks ago right after pinky was reduced to one unit Prozinc 2X daily. Because of the recurrent hypos, we decided for better or worse, to opt for safety despite higher BG numbers, hence the reduction from 3 to 3 1/2 units 2X daily to 1 unit 2X daily:
The curve reflects a strict low-carbohydrate diet composed of 40% Fancy Feast Classic wet food and 60% Young Again Zero Carb dry food. Late in the day on 7-28-12 we ran out of no-carb dry food. We substituted with Evo dry food with 10% digestable carbs.


7-28-12

7:30 am 1 unit Prozinc, no BG reading

10:00 am BG 494

12:00 noon BG 354

2:00 pm BG337

4:15 pm BG 430

6:00 pm BG 535 (pre-shot number ) 1 unit Prozinc

7:45 pm BG 481

10:00 pm BG missing (no nadir reading -cat disappeared)

12:00 midnight BG 406


7-29-12

6:00 am BG 517 (pre-shot number) 1 unit Prozinc

8:00 am BG 412

10:00 am BG 305

11:00 am BG 295 (one half hour past nadir)

12:00 noon BG 345

6:00 pm 1 unit Prozinc (no pre-shot number)

10:00 pm BG 355

11:00 pm BG 247 (one half hour past nadir) (The last two readings are given here because of the absence of late pm nadir reading on 7-28-12)

Raising insulin to 1 1/2 units 2X daily 2 weeks later we got the following BG numbers on 8-13-12:

6:00 pm (preshot) BG 517
8:00 pm BG 348
10:20 pm (nadir) BG 231

We are now at 2 to 2 1/2 units 2X daily with no drop in BG numbers.

We have studied this problem nutritionally and from other angles. The low fat option was considered because of the role of recirculating triglycerides in blocking insulin. This is a problem for the Burmese breed, of which Pinky shares some ancestory. We were wondering if anyone had any experience or knowledge concerning this "insulin blocker" in the diabetec feline.
 
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