A Dietary Plant Extract Formulation Helps Reduce Flea Populations in Cats: A Double-Blind Randomized Study.

There is a growing demand for natural products to be used to control fleas in pets. A prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study evaluated the efficacy of the biological plant-based food supplement Bioticks® (thyme, rosemary, lemon balm, fenugreek, wormwood, and lemongrass extracts) as a flea control product in naturally flea-infested cats with an indoor-outdoor lifestyle. Ten cats were used as placebo controls (group A). Ten other cats were fed the same daily diet but supplemented with Bioticks® (group B). Fleas were counted by combing at D0 and D0 + 14 days, then one, two, three, four, and five months after the start of this study. No flea treatment was administered, and no environmental changes were made for six months prior to the start and throughout this study. The product was well-tolerated. The mean flea population in group B progressively and steadily decreased to reach 3.3 ± 2.1 at month five. At the same time and under similar maintenance conditions, the average flea population in group A remained stable (14.3 ± 2.5) until the fifth month. The percentages of efficacy (Abbott formula) in group B compared to group A was 27%, 20%, 52%, 66%, and 77%, respectively, at one, two, three, four, and five months after the start of this study.

Evaluation of a plant-based food supplement to control flea populations in dogs: A prospective double-blind randomized study.

A prospective double-blind randomized placebo-controlled study evaluated the tolerance and efficacy of the biological plant-based food supplement Bioticks® (extracts of thyme, rosemary, melissa, fenugreek, absinthe and lemongrass) as a flea-control product. Twelve dogs were used as placebo controls (group A). Ten dogs under similar housing conditions received the same food daily but supplemented with Bioticks® (group B). Flea counts were performed on D0 and 14, then 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 months after the beginning of the study. No flea treatment was given or environmental modifications made during the 6 months prior to beginning and throughout the duration of the study. Efficacy was calculated according to Abbott's formula. No adverse event was recorded. At inclusion, dogs in groups A and B hosted a mean ± standard deviation of 7.9 ± 3.3 and 9.5 ± 3.6 fleas, respectively. The mean flea population in group A steadily increased until 4 months after D0 (21.5 ± 4.9 fleas/dog). Meanwhile, the mean flea population in group B dogs remained stable for the first month but then steadily decreased to reach an average of 3.1 ± 1.7 fleas/dog at D0+5 months. The percentage efficacy in the treated group as compared to the non-treated group was 33%, 51%, 71%, 80% and 82% at 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 months, respectively. Bioticks® was shown to be safe and effectively limited the flea population in dogs with a moderate flea infestation in conditions that were highly favourable to flea development. This is the first study to evaluate a plant-based product as an oral supplement for flea control.