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Cat Food Ingredient

Vitamin C

Our ingredient score: 3 / 5 · Vitamin · How We Score

Vitamin C is a well-known antioxidant; it protects cells from damage and supports immunity and connective tissue. Unlike people, cats make vitamin C from glucose in their own bodies, so they do not have to get it from their food. Still, extra vitamin C can support antioxidant defenses during times of stress, illness or old age. Foods usually use its heat-stable form, "L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate." It has been suggested that very high doses may raise oxalate in the urine, but no such effect has been shown at the levels found in cat food.

Vitamin C also appears on labels as Ascorbic Acid, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate.

Common Questions

Can vitamin C in cat food cause oxalate problems?

It has been suggested that very high doses may raise oxalate in the urine, but no such effect has been shown at the levels found in cat food.

Is vitamin C safe for cats?

Vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, is a vitamin that cats can make on their own. The Merck Veterinary Manual says dogs and cats synthesize vitamin C from glucose in the liver and that AAFCO has no dietary requirement for it in their foods. Merck also notes concerns about excess vitamin C in pets with a history of calcium oxalate stones. A cat with a medical condition should get supplement advice from a veterinarian.

Source: merckvetmanual.com

Why is vitamin C in cat food if cats make their own?

Cat foods often add vitamin C as an antioxidant that helps protect fats and other nutrients in the food. The Merck Veterinary Manual notes that cats synthesize vitamin C in the liver and that AAFCO has no dietary requirement for it, so its presence on a label reflects a formulation choice.

Source: merckvetmanual.com

Do cats need vitamin C?

Cats do not need vitamin C from food under normal conditions. The Merck Veterinary Manual explains that dogs and cats make vitamin C from glucose in the liver, and there is no AAFCO dietary requirement for it. Some foods still add it as an antioxidant.

Source: merckvetmanual.com

What is ascorbyl palmitate in cat food?

Ascorbyl palmitate is a fat-soluble form of vitamin C made by joining ascorbic acid with palmitic acid, a fatty acid. Because it dissolves in fat, it is used to slow fat oxidation in foods. On a cat food label it often appears with mixed tocopherols as part of the preservative system.

How does Pettings score vitamin C?

Pettings gives vitamin C 3 out of 5 and lists it as a vitamin. It appears on 75 of the 149 dry cat foods we list. Cats make their own vitamin C, so we score it lower than the vitamins they must get from food. Each food's page shows how it scores overall.

How Foods With Vitamin C Compare

Vitamin C is on the label of 75 of the 149 dry cat foods we list. Their average Ingredients score is 62 out of 100. The 74 foods without it average 52.

An average describes the foods, not this ingredient alone: one ingredient is only a small part of a food's score.

Top-Ranked Foods Without Vitamin C

  1. Orijen Guardian 8 (91)
  2. Orijen Kitten (91)
  3. Orijen Original Cat (91)
  4. Taste of the Wild Lowland Creek Feline Recipe with Roasted Quail & Roasted Duck (84)
  5. Open Farm Homestead Turkey & Chicken Recipe (78)

Ranked the same way as our best lists: nothing on the Avoid List and a Nutrition score of at least 6/10 first, then by Ingredients score.

Foods With Vitamin C (75)