What is Beta Carotene?
Beta carotene serves as a powerful antioxidant. It is an essential ingredient in your pet’s diet. While many food products may not contain ingredient, pet parents may want to make an extra effort to ensure that their four-legged family member gets plenty of this important antioxidant in their daily diet.
Beta carotene helps promote a strong immune system. Once it is consumed, it travels through the intestine and combines with fats from other foods. From there, it converts into Vitamin A. Vitamin A is stored in the body until needed. This ingredient can offer your pet a variety of health benefits and is essential for helping to maintain healthy vision, reproductive health, skin and coat.
Why is it important?
Beta carotene is absorbed by your pet’s digestive system and is eventually converted into Vitamin A. It is released through your pet’s blood stream and transported to the retina of the eye to help protect it from damage. Therefore, vitamin A provides essential support for healthy vision. It allows the retina to tell the brain what is being seen at the moment and is a crucial element to maintaining your pet’s health. Thus, poor eyesight may be a sign that your pet is lacking vitamin A.
As an antioxidant, beta carotene also helps fight off free radicals within your dog’s body. This nutrient is capable of absorbing the free radicals, ultimately allowing your pet to enjoy a heightened immune system. By helping to neutralize free radicals, it promotes overall health. Beta carotene converts into vitamin A, which supports healthy cell division. A study published by the Department of Animal Sciences at the Washington State University in Pullman, Washington tested the effects of beta carotene on female beagles. The addition of dietary beta carotene in the dogs resulted in heightened cell-mediated and humoral immune responses.
Another sign that your pet may be lacking this key antioxidant is poor skin and coat appearance. Proper levels of beta carotene help maintain the health of your pet’s skin and coat. By incorporating this ingredient into your pet’s diet, their body is able to reap all of the benefits.
Foods with Beta Carotene
Beta carotene can be found naturally in some human foods, which can occasionally be used as a nutritional treat for your dog. For example, carrots and sweet potatoes contain beta carotene and are safe to sporadically share with your canine companion.
However, beta carotene is very susceptible to the affects of heat. This compound has a tendency to lose significant amounts of its nutrients during heat processing. Although pets can obtain this nutrient through common pet foods, they are not guaranteed to get enough from their daily diet alone. Adding a cold processed supplement to your pet’s diet helps to increase the bioavailability of the nutrient. This guarantees that your pet is able receive the full benefits of the vitamins rich nutrients.
Boost the amount of beta carotene your pet receives by supplementing a NuVet Plus wafer. Opt for a Nuvet Plus wafer as a treat, rather than a traditional processed dog treat. NuVet Plus is a high quality natural supplement with real chicken liver so pets love the flavor.
Investing in a pet nutritional supplement will provide your pet with the boost of beta carotene it needs, as well as the vitamins, nutrients and antioxidants it may not be getting from its regular pet food. NuVet Plus is designed to improve your pet’s overall health and is cold processed to provide superior nutritional benefits.
For more information about the NuVet Plus product, visit the NuVet Facebook page today.
