TUMERIC AND YOUR HORSE January 26, 2015 17:17
Tumeric or by its botanical name, Curcuma longa, a member of the ginger family, owes its medicinal benefits to its active constituent Curcumin. Now Curcumin has been shown to have the following properties:
- Anti-inflammatory
- Anti-oxidant
- Anti-microbial
- Anti-carcinogenic
However its main medicinal benefits for horses is for equine osteo-arthritis, which is a degenerative joint disease, purported to be responsible for sixty percent of lameness in horses.
"...Curcumin, the active constituent of turmeric, has been shown in human research trials to actively down regulate inflammatory mediators through two main mechanisms: NF-KB inhibition and through activities as a secondary antioxidant. Equine osteoarthritis is primarily mediated by various cytokine release from damaged cells within the joint, resulting in high levels of PGE-2 and MMP-9, which further result in cartilage degradation and pain. Through NF-kB inhibition, curcumin has been shown to downregulate many inflammatory mediators, including PGE-2 and MMP-9, along with COX-2 enzymes. Curcumin has not only been shown to be fairly effective in human trials, but has also been shown to be safe even at high dosages with no noted side effects...." A Promising Natural Therapy for Equine Osteoarthritis Thomas Schell, D.V.M., DABVP (equine)
Now Tumeric is used as part of a management strategy to help equine osteo-arthritis, by reducing joint inflammation (synovitis) and return the joint back to its normal state. From some of the articles that I have read there has been some issues about how much actual curcumin is actually making it into the bloodstream via absorption through the gastrointestinal tract and how much benefit is lost through this dosage method.
Yet the benefits derived from this form of administration has been noted and subsequently documented, for using Tumeric as an anit-inflammatory agent for equine joint care. I have also noticed that there has been no adverse effects written about using Tumeric as a feed supplement for horses.
Look, yes I am biased, but I also believe in what I am selling, we practice what we preach and use what we sell.
Dosage: 1 to 2 tablespoons daily for a 500 kg horse.