DEAR READERS: Salmon has long been touted as a healthy food, but there are some serious downsides to consider.

Stocks of wild salmon and other fish, such as cod, tuna and halibut, are in dire straits from overfishing and from the warming, acidification and pollution of our oceans. The alternative, farmed fish -- especially salmon, as I have detailed in earlier writings -- have now also reached a point of critical concern. I call for an immediate consumer boycott of salmon, whether it be fillets, salmon oil supplements or as an ingredient in foods and treats for dogs and cats.

For more details, here is an excerpt from a June 2022 article on BeyondPesticides.org:

"Farmed salmon serves as an inferior food source, accumulating more toxic chemicals in fatty tissue with fewer healthy nutrient properties, (says) a study from the University of Bergen, Norway and Alternative Medicine Review. However, the issue of toxic chemical contamination in fish dates back decades. ... The aquaculture industry (e.g., farmed seafood/fish) repeatedly faces sustainability issues, failing to adhere to environmental regulations and threatening marine health. Extensive use of pesticides in local marine ecosystems has induced coastal habitat loss and increased genetic and health risks to wild marine populations. Moreover, insecticides used to kill salmon parasites (e.g., fish lice) have led to widespread disease persistence and pest resistance.

"Marine species biodiversity is rapidly declining due to overfishing, global warming, pathogens and pollution. Thus, further biodiversity loss can change aquatic and terrestrial ecosystem functions and reduce ecosystem services.

"Food analysis results find the consumption of farmed salmon fillets contributes to higher rates of metabolic disorders, including diabetes and obesity. These farmed salmon also contain levels of toxins, including PCBs and dioxins, that are five times higher than levels in other tested foods. The report suggests the primary causes of farmed salmon toxicity stem from the toxicants in fish feed, like ethoxyquin, and environmental concentrations of the chemicals, whether from terrestrial sources or farmed fish itself."

In addition to the other synthetic chemicals, PFAS (aka "forever chemicals") are now all over the news, primarily with freshwater fishes (see ewg.org/news-insights/news-release/2023/01/ewg-study-eating-one-freshwater-fish-equals-month-drinking), but in salmon, too (see purewaterblog.com/does-salmon-have-pfas-in-it-what-are-your-risks).

According to a 2018 article by Laura Reiley in the Tampa Bay Times, "Farmed salmon are fed pellets made out of fish oil and smaller fish, ground-up chicken feathers, poultry litter (yes, that's poop), genetically modified yeast, soybeans and chicken fat. Wild salmon get its lovely rose color from eating krill and shrimp. Farmed salmon, because it eats those pellets, is gray. To make it more appetizing to consumers, farmers add dyes to their feed."

See also this post on my website: drfoxonehealth.com/post/eating-lobsters-imperils-whales-farmed-seafoods-imperil-fish-stocks.

Put yourself in the mind of a farmed salmon, living in an overcrowded floating enclosure. These are fish that are used to swimming thousands of miles from rivers to oceans and back. Atlantic salmon are one of nature's greatest navigators: Their migration is a 2,000-nautical mile round-trip voyage.

On a promising note, veterinarians in the U.K. are advocating for better handling and more humane killing methods to be rapidly implemented, and more people are adopting vegan and vegetarian diets for environmental and health reasons. More government support is needed for Indigenous peoples, like the Lummi Nation, to restore coho salmon habitat for spawning and population recovery, as their rivers are being severely damaged by dams and by the timber industry.

For more, visit: americanindian.si.edu/environment/lummi/Strategies.cshtml. And to support efforts to protect fish, visit fishfeel.org.

DEAR DR. FOX: Since animals, fish and plants all have feelings, what should we eat? -- J.C., Westerly, Rhode Island

DEAR J.C.: Your question goes to the heart of an issue that has become ever more serious as the human population has increased to 8 billion. Where income permits, the market for meat has also increased, at great cost to the environment, wildlife and biodiversity, with documented suffering of farmed animals. This is why I regard veganism and vegetarianism as ethical imperatives, as per these posts on my website:

-- drfoxonehealth.com/post/world-hunger-and-rising-demand-for-meat-and-water

-- drfoxonehealth.com/post/changing-diets-for-healths-and-earths-sake

-- drfoxonehealth.com/post/vegetarianism-an-ethical-imperative

Read on for a study that is quite relevant.

PLANT-BASED DIET MAY LOWER COVID-19 INFECTION SEVERITY

A study found that in six European countries and the U.S., plant-based diets or pescatarian diets were associated with lower odds of moderate-to-severe COVID-19. From the study's conclusion: "Our results suggest that a healthy diet rich in nutrient-dense foods may be considered for protection against severe COVID-19. Future studies with detailed macro- and micronutrient data are warranted to study associations between dietary intake and COVID-19 severity." (Study: Hyunu Kim, et al.: "Plant-based diets, pescatarian diets and COVID-19 severity: a population-based case-control study in six countries," BMJ Nutrition, Prevention and Health, May 15, 2021)

While I applaud this study and its conclusions, I would caution that the research was limited to relatively affluent countries with better food availability than much of the world enjoys, including poorer citizens within those countries. We must develop agricultural practices that are sustainable, socially just and cause the least harm to the environment and the life community -- which includes plants, microorganisms in the soil, and animals terrestrial and aquatic.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: Interacting with animals can reduce stress and feelings of isolation, and having a pet may bring additional rewards by serving as a social bridge and encouraging physical activity, says Dr. Jen Brandt, the AVMA's director of member wellbeing initiatives. A recent Twitter chat hosted by the AVMA and the American Psychiatric Association delved into the mental health benefits of pet ownership, including for veterinary and mental health professionals. (Full story: AVMA News, April 11)

IN-HOME CATS, DOGS MAY REDUCE INFANTS' FOOD ALLERGIES

There were some interesting findings in a recent Japanese study entitled "Associations between fetal or infancy pet exposure and food allergies."

The study's conclusion reads as follows:

"This study showed that the association between pet exposure during fetal development or early infancy and the incidence risk of food allergies until the age of 3 years differs depending on the combination of two factors: pet species and allergen type. Dog exposure might reduce the incidence risks of egg, milk and nut allergies; cat exposure might reduce the risks of egg, wheat and soybean allergies; hamster exposure might increase the risk of nut allergy. However, this study was a questionnaire-based survey, and we did not perform an objective assessment. Further studies using oral food challenges are required to more accurately assess the incident of food allergies." (Full story: PLOS One, March 29)

DEAR DR. FOX: I read your column regularly, and I don't even have a pet. Your column is so educational. You state facts. It infuriated me that a reader in March considered what you write "politics."

Your response was perfect, but I'll bet that reader was so blinded by misinformation that he didn't understand it, nor care to try. What a country of people we have turned into. I feel sorry for my kids and grandkids.

Everyone was warned in 2000 that climate events were coming, but naysayers kept coming up with ways to refute the facts. -- J.F., Naples, Florida

DEAR J.F.: Your kind words of support are appreciated. Yes, we should all be concerned about the declining state of the world and of every country -- environmentally, economically and politically, and also in terms of public health standards and wildlife protection. The collision of overpopulation and overconsumption has brought on what I call the Three D's of Disaster: Dystopia, Dysbiosis and Dysphoria.

Author and critic Marya Mannes put it this way: "The Earth we abuse and the living things we kill, will, in the end, take their revenge; for in exploiting their presence we are diminishing our future."

Many feel we are indeed now facing nature's retribution, and the call for humane, ethical planetary care is long overdue. We can no longer afford to live in denial or condone a business-as-usual attitude that jeopardizes the quality of life for the generations to come.

TIME TO END TURKEY HUNTING?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates 21% of all U.S. hunters (about 2.5 million people) pursue wild turkeys, making it the second-most sought-after game, after deer. The estimated turkey population in Minnesota -- having been restocked with birds from Missouri in the early 1970s -- is around 70,000 birds. In 2022, some 60,000 registered hunters took a total of 13,488 turkeys statewide -- over 19% of the entire population.

According to Wild Birds Unlimited, "an adult turkey is one of the most voracious tick predators around." An individual turkey may eat 200 ticks every day. They also consume earthworms. Considering the rising incidence of tick-borne diseases across the U.S., and the harm to forests caused by invasive European earthworms, would it not be enlightened self-interest to stop hunting these magnificent birds and protect them out of respect and appreciation of their beneficial ecological services?

FUNGUS ALERT: ANOTHER CLIMATE CHANGE CONSEQUENCE?

In 2022, blastomycosis affected four people, one of whom died, and five dogs in the same neighborhood in St. Croix County, Wisconsin, according to the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Blastomycosis is caused by the Blastomyces fungus, which thrives in moist soil and decomposing wood and leaves. It is endemic in Wisconsin and in areas around the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys. "Clinicians and veterinarians should consider blastomycosis among patients who have compatible symptoms and live in or have traveled to areas where the Blastomyces fungus is endemic," said CDC epidemiologist Hannah Segaloff. (Full story: HealthDay News, April 3)

With climate change leading to flooding in many states, conditions are becoming more favorable for the proliferation of potentially harmful fungal infections such as blastomycosis.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: This recent post from pet food safety advocate Susan Thixton is a wake-up call. From Thixton's website, truthaboutpetfood.com:

"The University of New Mexico has recently published a study (exposing) a wide-awake nightmare of pet food. The study, 'Using Pet Food as the Subject to Investigate the Effectiveness of Whole-Genome Sequencing in the Authentication of Highly Processed Complex Food,' was published Jan. 6 by the American Chemical Society. The research did not provide the brand names of the pet foods tested.

"The study abstract stated, 'Our test detected DNA of undeclared ingredients in all tested pet food samples, entailing improvements of regulation and quality control in American pet food industry.' One of those 'undeclared ingredients' discovered in the dog foods analyzed was dog: Dog DNA was found in two of the six pet foods tested. This is the third time in four years dog food has tested positive for dog DNA. (The first evidence of this horror was DNA analysis included in a lawsuit against Rachael Ray Nutrish dog food.)

"The DNA analysis of these six dog foods found that every single pet food included multiple ingredients not disclosed on the label. Federal and state pet food regulations require disclosure on the label of all ingredients included. If an ingredient is not disclosed/listed in the ingredient panel, the pet food would be (considered) mislabeled. All six of the pet foods tested were mislabeled."

DR. FOX HERE: This can be extremely problematic when veterinarians are seeking to diagnose possible food allergies or intolerances.

Check Thixton's website and learn which pet food companies use safe, human-grade ingredients in their products.

DEAR DR. FOX: The papillon I had for more than 11 years was attacked and killed by a pit bull. The dog was unleashed and unfenced, and no one was outside with it. It ran across the street toward me and my two dogs. I picked up my Yorkie, so he was unharmed, but the pit bull grabbed my papillon by the throat and was swinging her around. I was screaming and crying for help. The owner finally came out and got the dog, but didn't say anything to me.

Animal Control was called, and it turned out that this dog had a previous citation against it. My neighbors still see the pit bull outside all the time, and they say the dog scares them, even though he is now chained up.

This dog needs to be put down and the owner needs to be held accountable. My neighbor suggested starting a petition calling for the dog to be put down. What can I do? My dog should still be here. -- N.B., Minneapolis

DEAR N.B.: This is indeed a tragedy. Some dogs, irrespective of breed, are improperly socialized, neglected and/or abused early in life. Such dogs are sometimes amenable to behavior modification and appropriate psychotropic medication, if action is taken when the first signs of antisocial behavior and aggression are evidenced. Clearly the owner of this dog, who had already received one citation, should be taken to court and his dog held in quarantine until the issue is resolved.

Like the death sentence for homicide, euthanizing dogs who have become dangerous is ethically questionable. But, with the reality of limited treatment resources and even less prevention expertise, the alternative is incarceration for life. For most dogs and humans alike, would this not be unwarranted cruelty, as well as a costly burden on society?

Regrettably, veterinary expertise in the behavioral care of dogs is relatively limited. Even so, in my opinion, the care available is significantly more advanced, in many ways, than the dysfunctional and overburdened mental health care system available for many people.

Many veterinarians have no formal training in ethology/animal behavior. The following is from a 2015 letter from veterinarians with the American College of Veterinary Behavior: "Of the 30 veterinary schools on the mainland U.S., only 12 have a board-certified behaviorist on staff. Also, the same number of schools offer an introductory behavior course, although only a few have it as part of the required curriculum. Those numbers tell us that less than half of our veterinary schools offer training in behavior at all. Considering that behavior problems lead to euthanasia and relinquishment to shelters at staggering numbers, and can directly affect patient care in the hospital, veterinary students today are still left unprepared to prevent, diagnose and manage these cases in practice."

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)