Sports nutrition - Horses and humans - What parallels can we draw?

Nutrition significantly influences athletic performance – at least this is what a recent international olympic Committee (ioC) statement on human sports nutrition has stated. they have also advised that all athletes should adopt specific nutritional strategies before, during, and after training and competition to maximize both their mental and physical performance and recovery. this may not seem earth shattering, but perhaps the significance is that nutrition is held in such high regard as a factor that helps athletes attain optimum exercise performance. Within horseracing, we have tended to regard nutrition as being ‘the icing on the cake’ and perhaps not fundamental to performance. So are there any pointers that we can draw from the approach to sports nutrition in human athletes?

By Catherine Dunnett Bsc, Phd

First Published (20 April 2011 - Issue 20)

Vitamin K – the forgotten vitamin

Vitamin K, which is classified as a fat soluble vitamin, has been present in racing rations for many years, both in forages and as one of a range of vitamins and minerals added to concentrate feed. To date, vitamin K has not been a fashionable vitamin, unlike vitamin C or vitamin E, which have received a lot of attention from a research perspective. Vitamin K is probably best known for its function in blood clotting, but more recently its role in bone metabolism has been highlighted in humans and horses. Here we will explain the role of dietary vitamin K in the context of racing and touch on some new research that has emerged in horses with respect to bone metabolism.

By Catherine Dunnett Bsc, Phd

First Published - (02 February 2011 - Issue 19)

Can nutrition give horses that first-class travel experience?

While transporting horses by road to the local racecourse or by air to another part of the world is now a routine affair, the end result can still be stressful enough to have a detrimental effect on a horse’s health and performance on the racetrack. Catherine Dunnett Bsc, Phd looks at ways nutrition can help the horse have a more comfortable experience.

By Catherine Dunnett Bsc, Phd

First Published (20 October 2010 - Issue Number: 18)