Corn in Dog Food: Dispelling the Myths

Brandy Arnold 01/23/2015

While some people insist corn is a nutritious ingredient in a dog’s diet, others claim that it is nothing more than just an unhealthy cereal grain in Fido’s grub. But what really is the truth? Is corn good or bad as part of our pet’s food? Well, the answer actually depends on whom you throw the question at.
Generally, worries expressed over the issue seem to be commonly coming from consumers, breeders,  and dog owners. While the crowd that swears that corn is great usually include those who seem to have something to gain from producing or selling various products made from the controversial grain.
Hashing Out Some Myths
Myth 1. Corn has a low glycemic index. Glycemic Index is a means to measure the leaning of a certain food to increase an animal’s blood sugar level. The greater the index, the higher the danger of a possible harmful upswing in blood sugar. As compared to most cereal grains in dog food-making such as corn meal, brown rice, oatmeal, and wheat which have a GI of 69, 55, 49, 41 respectively, corn which has a GI of 53 apparently does not have a significantly low level of glycemic index.
Myth 2. Corn is easy to digest. Because corn is a whole grain, it is not highly digestible. Unless the corn kernels are first refined into flour or meal, it can be very tough for Fido to digest it. In fact, corn and other grains are just digestible to the degree to which they have been processed.
Myth 3. Corn contains elevated biological value. There is nothing distinctive enough about the content of corn that makes it a dietary standout. Basically nothing that cannot be created in or derived from some other food constituent, not even protein. As a matter of fact, while eggs, fish meal, and beef have a biological value of 100, 92, 78 respectively, corn only has a biological value of 54.
Myth 4. Corn is a top source of energy. Dog owners should not buy a dog food in which corn is the primary ingredient. They need to favor those in which meat is the chief ingredient. While corn does contain protein, meat contains not just protein but important healthy fats as well. Corn is a carbohydrate and is mostly fat-free. Science proves that meats provide significantly more energy when compared to corn.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line here is that corn simply makes dog food cheaper to produce. This is made possible by diluting the diet’s more expensive meat ingredients. Corn-heavy kibble is basically a low-priced fast food for Fido. The reason so many manufacturers use it is to make their products more affordable for consumers on a budget. Of course, some dogs live long, healthy lives despite being fed a diet heavy in corn products. Nevertheless, to advertise corn largely because of its so-called nutritional benefits is very misleading.
So, it may be fine to give your pooch dog food that contains corn. But for you to remain uninformed of the true nutritional value of the cereal grain and then depend completely on those false claims can lead to your dog not meeting his nutritional needs. We all want the best for Fido. Settling for corn is certainly not the best option for him.