{"id":36336,"date":"2016-06-29T21:49:22","date_gmt":"2016-06-29T18:49:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/?p=36336"},"modified":"2016-06-29T21:49:22","modified_gmt":"2016-06-29T18:49:22","slug":"coconut-oil-help-horse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/2016\/06\/29\/coconut-oil-help-horse\/","title":{"rendered":"Coconut oil how could it help your horse?"},"content":{"rendered":"
By<\/b><\/span> Rebecca Haywood <\/b><\/span><\/h5>\n

From improving skin and hair condition to enhancing athletes\u2019 performance, coconut oil has been hailed as having health benefits for humans, but can it help your horse, too?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

You may have already incorporated coconut oil<\/b> into your own life, but can its benefits extend beyond human purposes \u2014 from cooking and beauty treatments \u2014 to helping support your horse\u2019s performance while also improving the condition of their coat?<\/span><\/p>\n

Garry Striven, managing director of Coconoil<\/b>, says that by using the virgin coconut oil, it could help support horses suffering with conditions such as mud fever<\/b><\/span>, and a challenged gut or immune system.<\/span><\/p>\n

Research suggests that one of the reasons coconut oil has become so popular with human athletes is that it\u2019s more readily used by the body as a fuel than other fats, and can therefore help with endurance performance.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cResearch has shown this phenomenon appears to also apply in equines,\u201d says Garry.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn one study scientists found that when horses were fed diets containing either a high carbohydrate mix, a mix with 10 per cent soybean oil, 10 per cent coconut oil, or a mixture of soybean oil (five per cent) and coconut oil (five per cent), and then performance tested, those on the coconut oil produced less lactate, when galloping, than those on other feeds.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA build-up of lactate, a by-product of using glucose as fuel, causes pain in muscles and therefore reduces performance.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Researchers believe that the fats in coconut oil are broken down more quickly than those in other oils and fats and utilised as fuel rather than glucose, thus reducing the amount of lactate produced and increasing exercise performance.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been selling organic virgin coconut oil for humans for over a decade, but recently as new research has begun to highlight its potential benefits for horses, we\u2019ve seen an ever growing demand for it in the equestrian world,\u201d says Garry.<\/span><\/p>\n

What the veterinary expert thinks\u2026<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vet Simon Joyner<\/b> (MRCVS), of Western Counties Equine Hospital in Devon, says he feels that the true benefits of coconut oil is an area where more research is needed.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cVets in our practice have used coconut oil in feed as an energy source, especially in old underweight horses and those horses prone to \u2018tying up\u2019,\u201d says Simon. \u201cThis is where it allows a reduction in carbohydrate\/starch based feeds. It has benefits that it is palatable and not prone to rancidity.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere is evidence that horses deriving a proportion of their energy from oils\/fats may have increased performance, but I am yet to be convinced personally that this is specific to or increased with coconut oil \u2014 although the composition of the oil is suitable as an energy source.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe must also be aware that the average horse in the UK is overweight and not an elite endurance athlete and need fewer calories rather than more,\u201d he adds.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cRegarding the topical antimicrobial properties, I am not convinced either. In horses not suffering from mud fever I\u2019m not a fan of interfering with the skin more than necessary,\u201d he points out. \u201cWhether that is by washing\/drying or by the application of oil\/barrier creams. In horses with mud fever in my opinion barrier creams\/oils are unhelpful as the bacteria (and mud fever is a bacterial not fungal infection) can multiply quite happily under the barrier cream.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

What the equine nutritionist says\u2026.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

David Frape<\/b>, a leading authority on equine nutrition, says: \u201cVirgin coconut oil is an unusual vegetable oil, as 60 per cent of its fatty acid content is made up of medium chain fatty acids, without trans fats.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is bland and readily consumed by fussy horses or dogs. It stores well and does not generate off-tastes. Virgin coconut oil is more easily digested than are most other fats or vegetable oils.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is useful for sick animals with malabsorption ailments, is excellent in training for endurance work and forestalling exhaustion. It preserves insulin sensitivity and should be useful in horses at risk of developing equine metabolic syndrome and type two diabetes, osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) and laminitis \u2014 so it\u2019s a useful adjunct for horse husbandry.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Which coconut oil should you be looking for?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

There are many coconut oils available, but there are certain factors you should look out for before you buy. Garry gives the following tips:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  • Buy virgin, but not \u2018extra\u2019 virgin coconut oil. If a coconut oil is called a \u2018virgin coconut oil\u2019 it should always contain at least 45 per cent lauric acid (still check the label though). This is a type of fatty acid and is responsible for many of coconut oil\u2019s purported benefits.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Look for \u2018cold pressed\u2019 oils \u2014 heating coconut oil up can be detrimental to the taste, quality and health benefits of virgin coconut oil. \u2018Cold pressing\u2019 literally means just that, pressing the oil out of the coconut flesh, which means it stays in its most natural form.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Picked, packed and pressed at source \u2014 this might not mean that the health benefits for your horse are any better, but it will mean more income goes to the local people, often in poverty stricken countries, who grow the coconuts and produce the oil.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Src:\u00a0horseandhound.co.uk<\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    By Rebecca Haywood From improving skin and hair condition to enhancing athletes\u2019 performance, coconut oil has been hailed as having health benefits for humans, but can it help your horse, too? You may have already incorporated coconut oil into your own life, but can its benefits extend beyond human purposes \u2014 from cooking and beauty …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":139,"featured_media":36334,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[381,373],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36336"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/139"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36336"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36336\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36336"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36336"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alassalah.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36336"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}