One Health: The Interconnection of Human, Animal, and Environmental Wellbeing

One Health is intended to express the concept that Health is the same and concerns humans, animals, and the environment in which they coexist. Our well-being is linked to that of animals and the planet. We live close contact with our dogs or cats, which can contract and transfer certain diseases.

A clean environment, proper parasite prevention, and pet hygiene are necessary to ensure the well-being of all. Lyme disease, for example, is a severe disease transmitted to humans by biting an infected tick.

Companies producing pet food or food for humans that follow the One Health concept start by respecting the environment where the DFP (Destined for Food Production) animal lives, devote attention to the care of the DFP animal itself, and finally, through research, develop products that ensure the welfare of the end consumer.

According to the One Health approach, the balance between man, animal and the environment is paramount. But how can this be ensured?

Inside this Article:

• One Health, environmentally friendly
• One Health and the commitment of companies
• One Health Respect for pets and other animals
• One Health the well-being of pets
• One Health for Pets

One Health, environmentally friendly

A plastic bag abandoned in the street can reach the sea faster than we think, and it takes 10 to 30 years to degrade here. Not to mention all those animals, of the sea but also terrestrial, who, because of our waste, find a horrible death through suffocation or intoxication.

First and foremost, we must take care of our environment. We must respect and preserve our planet as we care for our home. The Earth is only one; unfortunately, here we live, in contact with nature and living beings.

Many awareness-raising campaigns now emphasise the importance of recycling, e.g., using renewable energy and plastic-free materials. Our every action corresponds to a reaction. During this long period, it can be ingested by marine life and thus return to our tables as food.

One Health and the commitment of companies

In veterinary medicine, the need for proper use of antibiotics has been recognised.

Following the One Health concept. Several companies have changed the way they work and produce. In addition to preferring environmentally friendly materials for their packaging, they choose to run on renewable energy and use high-quality materials.

Among the breeding of animals for human consumption are those that guarantee the DFP animal a healthy lifestyle, respect for its ethological needs and appropriate care and feeding. Numerous studies and research have helped formulate medicines that ensure animal welfare while reducing environmental contamination in veterinary care.

In recent years, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has carried out several awareness campaigns and implemented strategies to combat this phenomenon, precisely through the One Health concept.

The need to use antibiotics properly has been recognised in veterinary medicine (as well as human medicine). However, administering this type of drug, when extreme or incorrect, fuels antibiotic resistance, that is, the ability of bacteria to resist the action of the antibiotic drug and thus live and multiply.

Proper antibiotic use is necessary for humans, pets, and DFP animals because the ” super bacteria” from an infected animal can be transmitted to the end consumer. Pets need foods that help them live better, respect nature, and ensure their mental and physical Health.

One Health Respect for pets and other animals

Dogs and cats are now integral to our family, and their needs are very similar to ours. British and international institutions have also considered the One Health concept.

The British government intends to regulate and guarantee the protection of the environment and animals, thus recognising their importance, especially for future generations. The European Union considers all animals (pets, but also farmed and wild animals) as sentient beings who must always be guaranteed the five fundamental freedoms:

1. Freedom from hunger and silk.
2. Freedom from environmental discomfort.
3. Freedom from pain, injury and disease.
4. Freedom to manifest the characteristic behaviour of the species.
5. Freedom from fear and stress.

One Health the well-being of pets

Following the One Health concept, several pet food companies have changed how they produce and work.

Pets need food that helps them live better, respects their nature and ensures their psycho-physical Health. Therefore, their diet, like ours, must be correct, balanced, and high-quality.

Complementary foodstuffs (supplements) that perform specific functions and help improve their general well-being are also available. But that is not all. Recently, products that can alleviate discomforts such as stress or anxiety have been studied. Again, this underlines how important it is, according to the One Health concept, to ensure the well-being of all.

One Health for Pets

Here are some tips to ensure all-round well-being for our four-legged friends, following the One Health philosophy:

• Therefore, we respect the environment by ensuring clean air, pure water, and quality products for our pets.
• We care for the environment in which they live so that it respects their needs.
• We ensure our presence. Like us, pets are social animals and want to live in company. Even the most independent cat must interact with its human companion, perhaps deciding when and how.
• We choose quality, certified and controlled products.
• Remember, veterinary checks are performed to prevent diseases that may also be transmissible to humans.

To be well, we no longer have to think in ‘watertight compartments’. There is only one Health: to be better off, we must strive to make the planet and its inhabitants well.

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