Elimination Diets

Food hypersensitivity is when certain food ingredients are not tolerated by the body. The most common adverse reactions in food hypersensitive animals are pruritus, vomiting and diarrhoea. Solely an ear inflammation or a combination of skin and intestinal problems are also symptoms regularly seen in animals with food hypersensitivity.

The assessment of food hypersensitivity is done by using a so-called elimination diet. This is a diet based on just one carbohydrate source (such as boiled white rice or potato) and one (animal) protein source, which are not used in regular pet food. Examples of protein sources are: horse, venison and rabbit. The purpose of an elimination diet is to assess if your cat truly has food hypersensitivity. The symptoms of food allergy overlap with symptoms of other diseases, like flea allergy or grass pollen allergy. An elimination diet also makes it possible to assess which dietary component causes the adverse reaction and can help to keep your cat free of symptoms.