The nutrients she needs, and why

We know the nutritional content of the food we eat because it’s on all the packaging. But what should your kitten’s diet ideally contain and why?

Vitamins

Vitamins are essential for your kitten’s vision, bone growth and metabolism. Every part of her needs the help of vitamins, and each vitamin has a very specific role. For example, if she cuts a paw, one vitamin will help stop the bleeding and another will help to repair the skin.

Good sources of vitamins in cat foods include liver, kidneys, yeast and grains. All of which can be found in Whiskas® Kitten food.

Minerals

Minerals give your kitten strong teeth and bones, and are great for her metabolism. The major minerals she needs are calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium chloride and magnesium. She also needs small amounts of trace elements like iron, copper, manganese, zinc and selenium.

Most minerals are toxic if too much is in the diet and too little can cause deficiency problems. Fortunately, Whiskas® provides exactly the right amount of all the essential minerals. Good sources of minerals in cat foods include fish, meat, liver and cereals. If you feed your kitten a balanced, prepared kitten food like Whiskas®, there’s no need to give her any mineral supplements.

Essential fatty acids

Your kitten needs essential fatty acids to help keep her skin, coat, reproductive system and metabolism healthy. Fats and essential fatty acids (major components of fats) are a major source of energy and make her meals taste great. Fats also transport vitamins A, D, E and K around the body.

Good sources of fats and essential fatty acids in cat foods include animal fats and vegetable oils.

Carbohydrates and fibre

Carbohydrate in the diet is used as an energy source or a source of dietary fibre. Fibre is a type of carbohydrate that can support good digestion and proper stool consistency. Grains such as rice, corn and wheat are good sources of carbohydrates and fibre in cat foods.

Protein

Protein is essential for your kitten's healthy growth and muscle tone and can be seen as the building blocks of most living tissue. All proteins are made from chains of smaller units called amino acids. There are thousands of different proteins in your little one's body, all with a different part to play. Kittens can break down proteins from the diet into their individual amino acid units and then use these to make new proteins for use in the body. Hair, skin, nails and muscles, for example, are all mostly protein.

Some amino acids can be manufactured in the body and are termed non-essential amino acids. Others, such as taurine and arginine, are called essential amino acids and will need to be provided in her diet, as kittens cannot make them themselves.

You'll find lots and lots of protein in cat foods with meat, eggs, fish, grains, and yeast.

You'll be pleased to hear that if you feed your little one Whiskas® meals, she'll get a perfectly balanced diet, with all the nutrients she needs to grow up into a happy and healthy cat.