Delmarva Unleashed Spring 2021

by Sandy Phillips

Well, it happened again; we have another dog in the family with cancer. After eight years of a holistic diet, no pesticides, holistic cleaning products, and still cancer, ugh. I suppose the upside is that the oncologist tells us that he was very likely pre-dispositioned. It was inevitable; however, the onset was very likely delayed because of his healthy lifestyle. The diagnosis has made me dig deeper into things we can do to stack the odds in favor of our dogs living long healthy lives. I’m always looking for tips to help my dogs. After all, my first Labrador/Chesapeake lived to the age of 14 and only had arthritis creep in during his last year; when it hit, it hit hard, so the next dog in my life had fewer joint issues, as I was now alerted to early signs of joint problems. I think each dog in my life lives a bit better than the previous one because I have learned.

I graduated from college with a science degree and have had a great deal of holistic training from some of the countries leading holistic vets, a privilege from a job I held in the past and one that has helped shape the lives of my dogs.

While diet, toxic environmental exposure and perhaps over vacciation still seem to be leading causes of canine cancer, I found an interesting topic truly worth bringing to your attention— Peanut Butter.

If you follow Delmarva Unleashed, you already know that peanut butter with the ingredient Xylitol is extremely toxic to our dogs. We have encouraged you to read the peanut butter label for years, but now I’m going to suggest that you take a closer look at peanut butter as I have.

Peanut butter contains something I have run test for thousands of times and yet not something I equated with peanut butter until now; aflatoxin.

Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring mycotoxin or mold, and it is one of the most carcinogenic substances known to man. In many cases, it impacts the liver. The FDA Bad Bug Book cites the following:

“Aflatoxins are toxic substances produced by some kinds of fungus that can grow on food. People who eat food that contains high levels of aflatoxins can become sick. To date, there has never been a human illness outbreak caused by aflatoxins in the US, where foods are carefully regulated and inspected to prevent such an occurrence, but some developing countries have had outbreaks. One of the aflatoxins is among the strongest known carcinogens (substances that cause cancer). Scientists have pinpointed a site where this aflatoxin appears to cause a mutation in human DNA. Aflatoxins can lead to liver and immune‐system problems. The combination of hepatitis B infection and eating foods contaminated with aflatoxin appears to make the risk of liver cancer especially high. Foods in which aflatoxins commonly are found (unless regulations and inspections prevent it, as in the US) include corn, sorghum, rice, cottonseed, peanuts, tree nuts, dried coconut meat, cocoa beans, figs, ginger, and nutmeg. Aflatoxins can cause illness in animals, and contaminated pet foods caused outbreaks and deaths among US dogs and cats in 1998 and 2005.”

You can never totally get away from aflatoxin; we consume food with “acceptable levels.” You may even find some level in organic peanut butter. That all being said, the FDA Bad Bug Book also states this: “Aflatoxin does not form in peanut butter once it is packed in containers, so if the production process is safe, then the final product will be too when it reaches the consumer.” Keep in mind that they also approve a wide variety of kibbles as “healthy” for our dogs.

Did you know that peanuts are an OWL food? Oats, Wheat, and Legumes (OWL) are plants typically desecrated with glyphosate right before harvest. According to the Holistic Home Economist, farmers use it on non-GMO fields because of the ongoing battle against superweeds, which have evolved due to GMO plants and pesticides.

When they take their harvest to market, they are paid less for a large percentage of “weed,” all impacting the farmer’s pocket. It’s been going on forever, and that's why pesticide use is so high. The weed has to be taken out by the processing facility, which adds a step and costs more. You get the picture.

Numerous studies have been published tying glyphosate to cancer and that exposure can increase risk by over 41%. In 2015, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a possible carcinogen, and its use has been banned in several countries, although the US is not currently one.

I digress; let’s move on to peanut butter characteristics, peanut butter that we assume is pristine: non-GMO, organic— which still can have a level of naturally occurring mycotoxins and...lectins.

Lectins can be potentially dangerous to our dogs because they can trigger or add to a leaky gut, a condition related to a host of health concerns from allergies to digestive issues. The bottom line is that lectins cause a low level of inflammation in the body. Science learns more each day about the long-term effects of inflammation, even low-grade inflammation on both the human and canine bodies. Managing inflammation plays a crucial role in maintaining a healthy body for all of us, including our dogs, too.

Are there unhealthy fats in peanut butter? They are there! Peanut butter contains omega-6 fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, or PUFAs. PUFAs induce inflammation throughout the body and, among other problems, cause joint pain. The negative effects of PUFAs are directly related to the health of your dog’s gut. If there is any question about your dog's gut health, inflammation from PUFAs can make matters worse.

My dogs don’t eat peanut butter regularly; I have always considered it high in calories, but does the occasional doggie treat with peanut butter impact them? And how do you define “regular basis”...daily? Weekly? Does a small amount cause enough inflammation to be concerned with? Is any level of inflammation acceptable? Too many questions.

Sometimes significant changes can be seen when we make tiny changes to our dog’s lives and diets. The food as medicine movement grows daily, and we learn more about how human and canine bodies react to those “treats” we indulge in. Maybe a nice bit of dehydrated liver is a better choice for our pups.