Finnish study finds raw diet boosts dogs’ metabolic health

FINLAND – A new study from the University of Helsinki has found that feeding dogs a high-carbohydrate kibble diet may negatively affect their metabolic health, while a raw meat-based diet appears to promote more favourable outcomes, including lower blood sugar and lipid levels.

The research, conducted by the DogRisk group at the university’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, compared the effects of two feeding regimes on 46 Staffordshire Bull Terriers over an average period of 4.5 months. 

One group was fed a traditional kibble diet rich in non-fibre carbohydrates such as rice and maize, while the other received a raw meat-based diet (RMBD) high in fat and free from carbohydrates.

Researchers monitored several biomarkers before and after the feeding trial, including blood sugar, cholesterol, triglycerides, insulin, glucagon, ketone bodies, and bodyweight. The results showed stark contrasts between the two groups.

Dogs on the kibble diet exhibited increased long-term blood sugar (HbA1c), cholesterol, triglycerides, and body weight, metabolic changes commonly linked to insulin resistance and obesity in humans. 

In contrast, dogs on the raw diet experienced decreases in blood sugar, triglycerides, and glucagon levels, alongside a greater use of fat-derived energy, as shown by elevated ketone body concentrations.

“Interestingly, the kibble diet was associated with changes often linked to adverse metabolic health, while the raw food diet promoted metabolic responses generally considered favourable,” said Dr. Sarah Holm, DVM and PhD, the study’s lead researcher. 

“More research is needed to understand the long-term health implications of these two feeding strategies.”

The study also introduced the triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index, a marker of insulin resistance previously used in human medicine, as a potential new tool for assessing metabolic health in dogs. 

The TyG index decreased significantly in the raw-fed group, suggesting improved insulin sensitivity.

Implications for both canine and human health

Dr. Anna Hielm-Björkman, who leads the DogRisk research group, described the findings as “a great example of One Health research,” noting their relevance beyond veterinary science. 

“Our findings reflect similar, and sometimes controversial, human studies suggesting that fat-rich diets actually lower cholesterol and triglycerides, while carbohydrate-rich diets raise blood lipids and long-term blood sugar, a known precursor to type 2 diabetes in humans,” she said.

Despite the raw diet’s high fat content, dogs consuming it had lower cholesterol concentrations than those on kibble, with three kibble-fed dogs even surpassing the upper reference range for total cholesterol. 

The study also reported that dogs on the kibble diet gained about 0.5 kg on average, a small but significant increase considering their median body condition score remained within the healthy range.

More research still needed

The authors noted that while pet owners widely use both diets, their long-term effects on canine health remain uncertain. 

They also cautioned that individual dogs’ nutritional needs, breed characteristics, and underlying health conditions can influence dietary outcomes.

The research team concluded that “the high-carbohydrate kibble diet was associated with changes often linked to adverse metabolic health, while the low-carbohydrate raw meat-based diet promoted metabolic responses generally considered more favourable.”

The full study, “A high-carbohydrate kibble diet versus a low-carbohydrate raw meat-based diet elicit distinct effects on energy metabolism in pet dogs,” is available in Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part D: Genomics and Proteomics via ScienceDirect.

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