Re: RC: Body fat and endurance

[Sarah Ralston <ralston@AESOP.RUTGERS.EDU>]

At 12:51 PM 12/17/99 -0500, you wrote:
>In a message dated 12/17/99 9:38:59 AM Pacific Standard Time, 
>ralston@AESOP.RUTGERS.EDU writes:
>
><<  Until recently very few people fed
> significant amount of grain or high simple carbo to horses on the rides.  >>
>
>Actually, in years past, a fair number DID try high-grain diets, and many
got 
>into serious trouble.  As both Tom AND Susan have suggested, timing is 
>everything, and low amounts fed more consistently do much more for the
horse. 
> But this is also in keeping with the fact that there IS that colonic
reserve 
>and the ongoing metabolism of VFA's and fats, so that the carbs are steadily 
>adding TO somthing else that is going on.
>
>Heidi
>

Dear Heidi, 

Agreed. I think it is important to recognize that blood glucoses between
about 60 and 100 mg/dl
are perfectly normal and, based on my research or the past 6-8 years,
feeding a small (< 1 lb or so) amount of concentrate or grain will not push
the glucose (or insulin)
to the levels where the subsequent insulin release would inhibit lipolysis
to any great degree in 
most individuals, though be aware that there are, as in humans, a wide
variety of responses and
some horses may react to a greater degree than others. I too have
emphasized that
tiiming is everything, the problem is, due to individual variation, knowing
what the 
timing for each horse is! Plus environmental conditions may impinge on the
response in ways we have yet to fathom. Ah, so much to learn, so little time!

This has been fun, much more so than grading final exams, but I guess I'd
better get back to my real work now....

Cheers and happy holidays (I may jump back in if this is still going on
after I turn in my final grades)!


Sarah L. Ralston, VMD, PhD, dACVN
Associate Professor
Department of Animal Science
Cook College, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
84 Lipman Drive
New Brunswick, NJ 08901

Ralston@aesop.rutgers.edu
732-932-9404


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