The high rate of canine cancer has been widely accepted as a natural and relatively unavoidable end to a dog's life. It turns out dog and human cancers are very similar, therefore dog health benefits from human research. More and more human research is being applied to theories on how dogs can avoid developing cancer. Owners who implement preventative measures may significantly reduce the odds of their dog developing cancer. Research now shows the effectiveness of nutritional supplements in combination with a healthy diet in preventing many canine chronic diseases. Research indicates as many as one-out-of-three cancer deaths both in humans and dogs could be avoided by adjusting nutrients in the diet. Dog health has much to gain by applying proven human nutrition principles to the modern dog diet.

The essential fatty acids (EFA's) have received loads of attention for their health benefits, however the combinations and types are very important to whether their effects are positive or negative. The Omega-6 fatty acid also known as linoleic acid (LA) found in corn oil, vegetable oil and grain feed red meat is believed to be a major contributor to the development of canine cancer. Too much omega-6 can lead to inflammation, creating the biological conditions conducive to developing cancer. A dog's diet high in omega 6 without the correct ratio of omega 3 fatty acids suppress cells referred to as T cells that are key in the body's natural method for fighting cancer. The healthy ratio of omega 6 to omega 3 is 4-to-1 however the modern canine diet approaches 15-to-1, the damage to long term dog health is supported by the 50% canine cancer rate.
Omega-6 fatty acids have proliferated both pet and human snack food ingredients. The appeal to food manufactures is the compatibility with the taste objectives, for pet food it provides a cheap way to add caloric energy values. The easiest and first thing dog owners should do to prevent the overload of LA is to discontinue feeding all human and pet snacks to your dog. Reputable commercial dog foods typically contain enough nutrients, including essential fatty acids, to supply a dog's body with healthy levels of the nutrients required for good health. Therefore the second step assumes dog owners are best served by continuing to feed their dogs a quality dog food, with the stipulation that a daily dog nutrition supplement is used to create healthy levels of EFA's.

Dog food contains a lot of cereal grain which is high in omega-6 fatty acids and low in omega-3s. Supplements which aid a dog's digestive process in addition to including substances that have a high omega-3 nutrient content can augment a dog food's deficiencies. Omega-6 fatty acids are vital to the health of dog's coat and skin, so rather than looking to eliminate LA use supplements to lend a hand in producing healthy ratios of omega-6 for dogs feed a typical dog food. My research leads me to believe almost all dog owners are best served by selecting a quality dog food, other methods such as BARF over simplify the complexity of providing the necessary nutrients to maintain a dog's health. For this reason dog nutrition supplements should be used to fill in the gaps of dog food, allowing dog owner's to take advantage of the value commercial dog food provides.