{"id":18669,"date":"2020-02-06T11:35:51","date_gmt":"2020-02-06T17:35:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/be55915bbd.nxcli.net\/?p=18669"},"modified":"2021-07-25T12:35:56","modified_gmt":"2021-07-25T17:35:56","slug":"rebalancing-digestion-in-the-horse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nouvelleresearch.com\/index.php\/articles\/18669-rebalancing-digestion-in-the-horse","title":{"rendered":"Rebalancing Digestion in the Horse"},"content":{"rendered":"

Digestive health in the horse is extremely important and is tightly connected with almost every medical and lameness condition that you can imagine.\u00a0 The importance of proper digestion goes way beyond the typical association with gastric ulcers, colic, diarrhea, or irritable bowel conditions in the horse.\u00a0 In many cases, if digestion is addressed properly, not only do the horses improve but their long-term health and soundness is greatly enhanced.\u00a0 In the first article<\/a><\/strong><\/span>, I discussed the concept of dampness and digestion in the horse, determining if this problem was present, and steps to intervene for best results. In this second part, I’d like to take a look at specific herbs and foods which can create benefit or potentially more harm, depending upon how they are applied in the horse.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"Digestive
Digestive Health in the Horse<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A happy and well performing horse is the one with a healthy digestive system.\u00a0 When they are healthy and balanced in the digestive tract, they feel good, perform well, and in the end, reduce your overall cost in medical care.\u00a0 Digestion goes way beyond the simple concept of processing food stuff and the extraction of nutrients in the horse.\u00a0 There are many facets to the process of digestion and the main players involved in this ‘digestive’ process become actively involved with overall health and soundness.\u00a0 These players of which I speak are the millions if not billions of bacterial microbes which are present within your horse’s stomach and intestinal tract, even in their mouth.\u00a0 These are the microbes that call these locations their home and greatly influence not only how well food is digested, but also the production of harmful inflammatory byproducts.\u00a0 This is the digestive microbiome. When in balance, things are well with your horse, but if out of balance, problems quickly develop and often linger for months if not years.<\/p>\n

In the first part of this article series<\/a>,<\/span><\/strong> I discussed the concepts of dampness or ama formation, which are terms used in Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine to reflect the buildup of toxic byproducts related to poor digestion and other fac.\u00a0 For many horses, this dampness equates to things like mucous, phlegm, oily skin and mucous coating to the feces or even diarrhea.\u00a0 It is also connected with an overweight body condition in the horse, viewing fat as being ‘dampness’ or an accumulation of sorts.\u00a0 This overall concept is very important, as not only does it impact a large percentage of horses, but this accumulation of toxic debris within the body of the horse equates to poor overall health, joint, tendon, and hoof issues. A more extensive discussion of dampness and digestion, along with clinical signs, can be found in the first part of this article.<\/p>\n

Rebalancing and supporting digestive function in the horse can equate to marked improvements in:<\/strong><\/p>\n