Can My Cat Eat Candy?
Although they are owners of a very demanding palate, cats have some limitations in their sense of taste. In fact, one of the most interesting facts about the feline palate is its inability to perceive the sweet taste.
For all these reasons, it is unusual for a feline to feel interested in consuming sugary foods. However, below we will tell you if a cat can eat sweet or if this type of food is harmful to its health.
Why don’t cats recognize the sweet taste?
Human taste buds contain two different proteins that allow them to perceive sweet flavors. The body of cats, for its part, does not produce one of these two proteins. In this way, felines are unable to distinguish the sweet taste and are hardly interested in consuming it.
According to many experts, this inability to perceive the sweet taste would be an adaptive capacity developed during the evolutionary history of felines.
As most sweet foods are toxic or dangerous for these animals, their body would have developed a natural rejection of this type of food as a self-defense mechanism.
However, eventually cats may show interest in trying semi-sweet foods that are rich in protein or fat, such as ice cream and yogurt. In addition, they strongly reject artificial sweeteners, as well as foods sweetened with them.
We must be very careful with the habits with which we raise our felines, especially regarding their diet. Although her body is naturally programmed to reject sweets, a cat can eat sweet and sugary foods if her guardian introduces them to her as part of her routine.
It is essential that you provide a balanced diet and respect the nutritional needs of your cat. To choose the most appropriate diet for your cat, we recommend that you have the guidance of a veterinarian.
What other flavors do cats perceive?
Despite not perceiving the sweet taste, kittens are very easy to perceive acidic foods. Your taste buds have a high concentration of acid taste receptors. For this reason, this type of food is very attractive to cats, although citrus fruits damage their digestive system.
The second most noticeable flavor for the feline palate is salty. Their taste buds also have a large number of receptors for salty taste, which is why they like this type of food quite a bit. But salt is a dangerous food for cats and its intake can lead to various health problems.
Our kittens can also taste bitter flavors, although less intensely than we do. This is supposed to be another adaptive ability of your body to avoid consuming bitter poisons, such as strychnine.
So can a cat eat candy or not?
Although we have seen that felines do not have a predilection for sweetness, we have not yet given an answer to whether a cat can eat sweetness or if this type of food harms its health. To answer this question, we will have to analyze different variables.
First of all, we must emphasize that a large part of adult cats are lactose intolerant. While still lactating, baby cats produce a high amount of the enzyme lactase, which works by digesting lactose molecules.
As the kitten grows and stops being suckled by its parent, its body gradually decreases the production of this enzyme.
Consequently, felines become unable to properly digest lactose after reaching adulthood. In conclusion, sweets derived from or containing milk can cause diarrhea, vomiting, colic and gas, all of them symptoms of lactose intolerance in cats.
On the other hand, human sugary foods, drinks and treats often contain not only a huge amount of refined sugar, but also sodium.
Both ingredients, sugar and sodium, are very harmful to the health of the cat, and can even poison its body. In addition, they increase your predisposition to develop diseases such as obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and kidney problems.
Also chocolate is one of the most toxic food for the cat by its high content of milk and sugar. If your kitty has ingested large amounts of sweets (especially chocolate), do not hesitate to take him to the vet immediately.
