Bobzilla is committed to one hundred percent transparency in all of its scientific research into animal wellness and prevention of disease. Bobzilla believes that every animal and animal lover should benefit from unbiased information. Bobzilla does not seek to profit from any research findings and is dedicated to publicly sharing all findings.

Most recently, Bobzilla has funded the research of Dr. David Turner, Ph.D who is a member of the Massey Cancer Center research team at Virginia Commonwealth University, Vice Chair of Research & Innovation of the Cancer Prevention and Control research program and founder of the Anti-A.G.E Foundation, a non-profit organization which spreads awareness about the severity of processed foods and their impact on the health span and life span of humans and dogs alike.  

Dr. David Turner

His work focuses on the prevalence of AGEs in popular dog foods.  AGEs, or advanced glycation end products, also referred to as glycotoxins, which are harmful oxidative compounds that accumulate in tissues over time, causing stress and inflammation, and in turn increase the risk of developing diseases like obesity, cancer, heart disease and diabetes in both humans and dogs.

According to Dr. Turner's research, the global pet food market is valued at well over 100 biillion dollars, with the most common type of pet food being consumed is kibble, wet canned, then snacks and treats.  Most of these products are ultra-processed for convenience, to prolong shelf-life and keep production costs lows.    

Dr. Turner and his team have estimated that "dog food is about 100 times higher in AGEs than human food,” and and believes that this may "reduce our canine companions quality of life and overall lifespan."   

He is constructing a database of A.G.E. levels in multiple types of dog foods - including kibble, wet food, homemade and fresh, which will be made publicly available on this site soon! In addition, Dr. Turner is also assessing if A.G.E.s in processed pet food can promote the same diseases in dogs that are observed in humans by A.G.E consumption.  

In the meantime, please check out this article from Virginia Commonwealth University's Massey Cancer Center and this article from the Medical University of South Carolina's Hollings Cancer Center to learn more about this Dr. Turner / Bobzilla collab.  

More on AGEs here: