Science News Archive

Dogs and Cats Suffering From Obesity Too !

Doctors are worried that people in Britain are too fat, placing themselves at increased risk of heart disease and diabetes - in fact a record one in five of us are now clinically obese and about 1 person in 3 is overweight, a problem that is costing the NHS over 3 billion pounds a year to deal with. But it isn't just people that seem to be having a problem - increasing numbers of dogs and cats are beginning to suffer from diabetes too ! Experts blame increasing weight, lack of exercise, increased life-expectancy and even psychological stress, and are calling for better education of animal owners to tackle the problem (Diabetic Medicine 2002;19:77-80). It's a dog's life eh ?

27th Apr 2002