Improve your horse's performance with Curcu-eze

Ranvet sponsored rider Charlotte Pedersen riding Baunehojens Diamond Dancer Owned by Reosenbjerg Stud

Training and Inflammation

Whether you are riding your horse once a week or training for high level competition, joint, muscle inflammation, and stiffness may flare up at any time and continue to be an ongoing issue. 

Inflammation may be due to poor conformation, environmental factors, training injuries, poor surfaces, or general wear and tear as your horse ages. 

Inflammation is part of the body’s healing process.  In a healthy horse, following exercise, the body will produce an inflammatory healing response to enable regeneration and repair to occur.  The body repairs itself and is ready for the next round of training or competition.  In some cases the inflammatory response is continually expressed and horses will become sore and will not improve and adapt from training to competition. 

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) drugs are commonly used to treat muscle and joint soreness however, the side effects of these drugs may outweigh the benefits.  Chronic use of NSAIDs will lead to the degradation of the mucosal lining of the stomach and increase the prevalence of stomach ulceration. Additionally, severe inhibition of inflammation caused by long term use of NSAIDs, may impair the adaptive response to exercise and have a negative effect on muscle’s response to exercise and regeneration, therefore limiting improvement to training and competition.

Discovering less damaging naturally occurring substances that relieve inflammation has been a focus of Ranvet’s recent research. Curcumin acts through a similar pathway to NSAIDs without the risk of stomach ulceration, while having a less pronounced suppression of inflammation.

What is Curcumin?

Curcumin is a potent antioxidant, with numerous research publications demonstrating curcumin relieves inflammation and has a positive impact on muscle and exercise recovery. Without sufficient antioxidant capacity muscle soreness is likely to occur.

Curcumin is derived from the Indian spice Tumeric, containing approximately 1-4% of curcumin.  Minimal research supporting the anti-inflammatory benefits of feeding Tumeric has been published. Tumeric alone, has a low curcumin concentration and bioavailability. The bioavailability of curcumin contained in Tumeric is very poor, with less than 1.0% absorbed. 

Optimising the absorption of curcumin and bioactivity are key factors to consider when determining the most effective curcumin supplement. Naturally occurring curcumin is poorly absorbed and has a very low bioavailability.  Consequently, Curcumin requires a carrier to improve absorption into the blood and target tissues. Without improving the bioavailability, curcumin will pass through the horse’s digestive system and be present in the manure. 

Ranvet’s Research

Ranvet have researched and developed a highly bioavailable curcumin called Curcu-eze.  Following 12 months of Australian based research we are satisfied that all disciplines of horses can benefit from Curcu-Eze.

Two key indicators measured during the research were stride length and cortisol production.  The shortening of a horses’ stride as training intensity or duration increase is a common condition seen across all disciplines. 

In horses presenting with shortened strides after 2 weeks of supplementation with Curcu-eze, we found all the horses’ stride increased to their optimal length.  A longer stride length is highly desirable for training and competition enabling your horse to be more efficient using less energy as well as being happy and heathy.   

Further research conducted at Randwick racecourse measured cortisol production after high intensity exercise.  Cortisol is a steroid hormone produced in horses and humans adrenal glands to manage stress.  As you may be aware stress can be physical, mental, emotional, or environmental. Cortisol continues to be released when stress continues.  Higher than average cortisol production has a deleterious effect on the horse’s body, supressing the immune system, whilst negatively affecting training, competition, and recovery, often horses will fail to improve.  Inflammation from training or competition may stimulate higher than normal cortisol production.  After 2 weeks of Curcu-eze supplementation we found that the horses cortisol levels were lower than previously measured, lowering cortisol production has positive implications on numerous areas of your horse’s health including; mental wellbeing, appetite, recovery, and performance.

Written By Ranvet’s Nutritionist Mitch McBrideBScAgr/AnSc

Curcu-eze is a natural supplement designed to combat soreness, relieve inflammation and enable a faster recovery. Older horses or horses prone to joint or muscle soreness may benefit from its use. 

Read more about Curcu-eze here

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