What Does Beta Glucan Do for Dogs?

You probably have heard of fiber. But have you heard of beta glucans? These molecules are a special kind of soluble fiber with plenty of potential health benefits.

We discuss how beta glucans can support your dog's health and the best way to add them to your dog's diet.

Key Takeaways

Beta glucans are complex sugars formed of long chains of connected glucose molecules.
Tens of thousands of scientific papers have been published discussing the potential benefits of beta glucans. Needless to say it’s well-researched!
The potential benefits of beta glucans for dogs include supporting the immune system, maintaining a normal histamine response, supporting digestive tract health, and more.

See More: How Long Does It Take a Dog To Digest Food?

Beta Glucan for Dogs

Sean Zyer, co-founder of Earth Buddy, says:

"Beta glucans are a type of soluble fiber, found in certain plants and functional mushrooms. Research suggests beta glucans can provide various potential health benefits for dogs, from assisting the immune system to supporting a healthy digestive system and more."

You've likely heard about the potential benefits of fiber. Research has conclusively demonstrated that fiber is a crucial part of both your and your dog's diet.¹

Not all fiber is the same, though. There are two fundamental types of fiber.

The first is soluble fiber. This fiber can be dissolved in water. The billions of microorganisms that live in your dog's digestive system rely on soluble fiber as a food source, making it important for maintaining a healthy gut microbiome.²

The other kind of fiber is called soluble fiber or dietary fiber. Unlike soluble fiber, insoluble fiber usually passes right through your dog's digestive system. But it still has many important functions, including absorbing water and contributing to healthy stool.³

Within these two general categories are further subcategories of fiber. Beta glucan is one of those categories.

What Are Beta Glucans?

Beta glucans are all soluble fibers. In fact, they are one of the most frequently consumed soluble fibers, at least by humans.⁴

More specifically, beta glucans are polysaccharides, or complex sugars. That means they all have multiple sugar molecules connected by chemical bonds.

Chemical Structure

The name "beta glucan" describes this chemical structure. Glucans are complex sugars derived from glucose. The "beta," scientifically written as the symbol, β, describes the type of bond joining the individual sugar molecules together.

These bonds aren't always in the same place. Different bond locations create different beta glucans with slightly different potential benefits.

In general, all beta glucans have a central chain formed of many glucose molecules. These units are usually connected by bonds between the first and third carbons in each individual glucose molecule.

In beta glucans derived from bacteria or algae, that's it. But other beta glucans have more complex structures with additional bonds.

For example, beta glucans from cereals also have bonds between the first and fourth carbons in the glucose molecules. And beta glucans from yeasts also have bonds between the first and sixth carbons.⁵

This last type of beta glucan is perhaps the most widely studied and used. These beta glucans are technically referred to as beta 1,3 1,6 glucans. That name refers to the fact that bonds exist between the first and third, and also the first and sixth, carbon atoms in each glucose molecule.

These glucose molecules connect together to form long, branching chains.

Bonus: How Can You Tell if Your Dog Has Allergies?

Beta Glucans in Mushrooms

person holding reishi mushrooms immune function inflammatory bowel disease immune cells cancer cells chronic inflammation obese dogs animal nutrition yeast beta glucans anti inflammatory effects

This final type of beta glucans are commonly found in mushrooms.

For example, one study found that over 25% of the content of reishi mushrooms is beta glucans.⁶ A similar study from 2025 found the cordyceps mushrooms also contain many beta glucans.⁷

These mushrooms are known as functional mushrooms or adaptogenic mushrooms. They have a range of potential health benefits, in part due to their beta glucan content, and in part due to the hundreds of other compounds they contain.

Beta Glucans Research: Potential Health Benefits

The chemical structure of beta glucans gives them some important potential health benefits.

Digestive Tract Health

You've likely heard about the importance of fiber for gut health. Research has found that beta glucans may help Support Digestive Tract Health in Dogs.

For example, a 2024 study found that kibble enriched with beta glucans caused a change in the type of bacteria present in the guts of dogs who ate it. Specifically, a type of beneficial bacteria that produces helpful short-chain fatty acids increased, and a type of potentially harmful bacteria decreased.⁸

A 2025 scientific review confirmed this finding, concluding that beta glucans can help maintain proper gut flora.⁹

One way of tracking gut health is through feces. A 2024 study examined the feces of puppies given beta 1,3 1,6 glucan supplements, and found improvements to the fecal microbiota. That, in turn, suggests the beta glucans helped the puppies maintain proper gut flora.¹⁰

Supporting your dog's gut health is absolutely vital, not just for digestion but for overall health. As one 2025 review noted, the gut microbiome contributes to and even regulates other bodily functions, including the immune response and even general behavior.¹¹

Immune System Support

Research has also shown that beta glucans can support the immune system directly.

For example, a 2023 study investigated how dogs fed diets with beta glucan supplementation responded to vaccines. In the dogs given beta glucans, the immune system responded to the vaccines in a more efficient manner, suggesting the beta glucans helped support the immune response.¹²

Another study found a similar result. Dogs fed beta glucan supplements demonstrated an enhanced immune system response to a vaccine.¹³

Yet another study found that beta glucans help support the immune system in multiple different vertebrates, including dogs.¹⁴

In fact, there are literally tens of thousands of scientific papers discussing how beta glucans can support the immune system.

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Balance Histamine Response

One of the functions of the immune system is to release histamine. The immune system releases histamine when it detects a threat. Unfortunately, allergens like pollen can trigger the release of histamine, which can then cause allergy symptoms.

Research suggests that beta glucans can help dogs maintain normal histamine levels.

For example, a 2025 study found that puppies given beta glucan supplements had lower levels of histamine in their feces.¹⁵ A scientific review from the year before noted multiple studies that found beta glucan supplementation helped rats maintain normal histamine levels. This review also concluded that beta glucans can help soothes skin-related issues associated with seasonal allergies in dogs.¹⁶

Healthy Inflammatory Response

The immune system is also linked to inflammation. Research suggests that beta glucans can help dogs maintain a normal inflammatory response.

For example, that 2024 review noted multiple studies that found beta glucans could do exactly that.¹⁷ A 2020 study found that beta glucans helped dogs maintain a normal inflammatory cytokine cascade.¹⁸

How to Add Beta Glucans to Your Dog's Diet

You may have noticed that many of the studies discussed above use beta glucan supplements. Because many beta glucans are found in things like bacteria, algae, and yeast, supplements are often the best way to include them in your dog's diet.

Supplements

One great example is Earth Buddy's Allergy & Immune Support Mushroom Tincture. It contains a blend of five powerful functional mushrooms with high beta glucan contents: reishi, cordyceps, turkey tail, agarikon, and lion's mane.

We recommend giving any supplement, including this mushroom tincture, to your dog with a meal. Make sure to follow the dosage recommendations provided, which are calculated based on your dog's body weight.

If you prefer solids to liquids, consider Earth Buddy's Organic Mushrooms Immune & Allergy Supplement. It's a blend of the same five functional mushrooms, but in powder form. This is a more potent form of our Mushroom Extracts, thanks to the freeze-dried liquid mushroom extract. This helps concentrate the bioactive compounds found in mushrooms.

When choosing products with beta glucans extracted from mushrooms, quality is crucial. One way to confirm the quality of a supplement is its source. All of Earth Buddy's mushrooms are USDA-certified organic.

Another way is by checking whether a product has been tested. All of Earth Buddy's mushrooms are tested by a third-party lab for purity and potency.

"I've always been impressed by your company's dedication to testing, even when it's not required, or no one forces you to — just from a pet parent perspective," notes Dr. Casandra Andre, in conversation with Earth Buddy co-founder Sean Zyer. "You understand the importance of having a clean product and making sure that your clients can see that for themselves. And I'll say from the veterinarian's perspective, the ability to look at a lab test makes me really happy."

Foods

Beta glucans are also present in certain foods that are safe for dogs.

For example, dogs can actually consume some functional mushrooms, like reishi and turkey tail.¹⁹

Oats, yeast, and seaweed also contain beta glucans. However, the types of beta glucans these foods contain may be different from those beta 1,3 1,6 glucans tested in the studies discussed above. So they may not have the same potential health benefits.²⁰

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Conclusion

Beta glucans could be a great addition to your dog's diet. Research has shown they can potentially support many aspects of your pup's health, from your dog's immune system to gut health and more.

The best way to incorporate beta glucans into your dog's diet is through High-Quality Supplements. Look out for supplements that use organic ingredients that have been tested for quality by an independent lab, like our CBDA Tinctures.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Beta Glucans Good For Dogs?

Yes! Beta glucans are a type of soluble fiber. Research suggests they can provide many potential health benefits for dogs, including supporting their immune system, digestive tract, and more.

However, there are different types of beta glucans, each with different potential health benefits. One of the most-studied is the type found in yeast and functional mushrooms.

Are Beta Glucans Hard on the Liver?

The opposite. Research suggests that beta glucans can actually support the normal health and function of the liver. They are antioxidants, which are important for normal liver function.²¹

What Foods are High in Beta Glucans?

Several foods that are safe for dogs are high in beta glucans. They include oats, yeast, functional mushrooms, and seaweed.

However, different foods may contain different types of beta glucans, which may have different potential health benefits. For example, the beta glucans in oats are different to those in functional mushrooms, and may not have the same potential benefits as those in mushrooms.

Keep Reading: Can Dogs Have Hay Fever?

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What Does Beta Glucan Do for Dogs?

Key Takeaways

Beta Glucan for Dogs