The Basics of Feline Diabetes

All cells in the body use glucose ("blood sugar") as their source of energy. However, in order for glucose to provide nourishment to the cell, the glucose must get inside the cell. Insulin, which is produced by the pancreas, is the substance that tells the 'front door' of the cell to open up in order to let the glucose inside. If this system is disrupted for any reason, the glucose cannot enter the cell and subsequently, the level of glucose increases in the blood stream (hyperglycemia) and the cells go 'hungry'.

There are two types of diabetes. Type 1 and Type 2. Type 2 is the more common form in both humans and cats.

Type 1 occurs when the beta cells of the pancreas are not able to produce enough insulin.

Type 2 is characterized by two problems. The first, as in Type 1, is a diminished ability of the pancreas to secrete insulin. The second issue is one of insulin resistance. In other words, the receptors on the cell wall that would normally open the door to the cell to let the glucose in when insulin 'knocks', stop 'listening' to the insulin. The cells 'resist' the signal that the circulating insulin is sending and the glucose is not transferred to the inside of the cell, resulting in an elevated blood glucose and cellular 'starvation'. The elevated blood glucose, in turn, sends a signal to the pancreas telling it to secrete more insulin. The elevated insulin may somewhat override the insulin resistance resulting in more glucose entering the cells, but eventually the pancreas can become exhausted or 'burned out'

The Cat's Unique Metabolism

The Cat's Unique Metabolism

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 that includes a very small amount (3-5 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.


The three main 'take-home' words from my Feeding Your Cat article are "proteins" (animal versus plant), "water", and "carbohydrates". For this article, the most important of the three subjects is carbohydrates.