Healthy dogs were administered acute oral doses of D-allulose (also called D-psicose) to evaluate its toxicity. Six dogs received oral doses of either a placebo or D-allulose solution (1 and 4 g/kg) on three different study days. One dog experienced vomiting, and five dogs showed transient diarrhea when 4 g/kg of D-allulose was administered. All dogs were active and had a good appetite throughout the study period. Blood glucose concentration slightly decreased without a rise in plasma insulin concentration 2 hr after D-allulose administration. Plasma alkaline phosphatase activities showed a mild increase between 12 and 48 hr after D-allulose administration. These data suggested that a single oral dose of D-allulose does not show severe toxicity in dogs.

D-allulose is a C-3 epimer of D-fructose and has recently been investigated for its hypoglycemic effects. In the present study, the effects of D-allulose on glucose metabolism were evaluated in healthy dogs administrated sugar or food. The oral administrations of D-allulose decreased plasma glucose concentrations after oral glucose or maltose administration, with a diminished plasma insulin rise. The glucose suppressive effect of D-allulose was also observed after intravenous glucose administrations without increase in plasma insulin concentration. In contrast, D-allulose showed no effect on plasma glucose and insulin concentrations after feeding. The present results suggest that D-allulose administration may be beneficial in dogs with impaired glucose tolerance. Further studies investigating the therapeutic efficacy of D-allulose in diabetic dogs are required.