A Closer Look at Low NSC and Fat Based Energy

Fibre first!

Every equine diet should be built on a foundation of roughage! In an ideal world horses would live on pastures with access to forage 24/7 – this is not always possible, but for our horses to be healthy and perform well they need adequate fiber.

It is recommended that horses receive a minimum 1.5-2% of their body weight in roughage every day (500 kg horse = 7.5-10 kg roughage). Long stem roughage is best as it provides cellulose and hemicellulose, which fuel the ‘good bacteria’ in the microbiome of the hind gut. Horse’s that don’t have access to abundant, improved pastures 24 hours a day (we can all dream, right?) you may need to supplement their grazing with grass hay.

Non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) can have serious negative impacts on some horses including those with insulin sensitivity, insulin resistance and Cushing’s disease. It is believed that the negative impact on these horses is elicited through the effect of NSC on post feeding blood insulin concentrations. Recent research has shown that prolonged hyperinsulinaemia was enough to precipitate laminitis in otherwise normal ponies. The nutritional management of these metabolically sensitive horses therefore relies heavily on avoiding feeds that will cause significant changes in post feeding blood insulin parameters.

Therefore, feeds which contain low amounts of NSC should be preferentially selected as feeds for metabolically sensitive horses. The difficulty for horse owners is selecting a suitable low NSC feed, as currently NSC is not a labeling requirement.

Submitted by Leah Hope,

Energy from oils, not grains

Horses that require more energy than can be provided by pasture alone have historically been supplemented with grain based “hard feeds.” As knowledge of equine digestive health has improved, it has become clear that grain based feeding is not the healthiest option for most horses. Grains contain high amounts of starch and sugar, referred to collectively as non-structural carbohydrates (NSC). A diet high in NSCs has been linked to digestive upsets, stomach and hindgut ulcers, poor behaviour and poor performance. So what else can provide “safe” energy to working horses?

Oils (fat based energy) can easily meet the energy requirements of performance and pleasure horses, even during sustained or intense work. Feeding a grain free, high fibre diet will support good hind gut health, by promoting the development of a healthy microbiome –which in turn supports good behaviour and performance. Fat based energy utilizes an alternative metabolic pathway in the horse, when compared to grain based energy. This alternate pathway is associated with reduced lactic acid production during exercise and may result in improved muscle recovery post activity.

Oils vary considerably however in the way they are metabolized. Most vegetable oils are polyunsaturated, slowly absorbed, and prone to rancidity. By comparison, tropical oils such as coconut oil contain the unique medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) which are readily absorbed and digested. These oils are saturated and are not prone to rancidity, are very palatable, and can promote gut health.