Truman:
<< Now what happens when we interfere with this conditioning and acclimation
process by adding all sorts of "nutrients" - MSM, DMG, etc. Are we really
helping or are we inhibiting (with all good intentions) the natural
acclimation process brought on by exercise? >>
Ah, an area where I have some little expertise. As you may know, a sore hock
often leads to other sorenesses--back, front legs, etc. Also, a sore anything
means that the horse cannot perform rehabilitative exercise safely. In
general, all properly applied exercise is rehabilitative or regenerative.
If I have stupidly overtrained a horse, then I am facing a problem--muscle
soreness is the least of those problems, but a frequent complaint. It is
beneficial to sore muscles to be exercised, but it is dangerous to exercise a
sore-muscled horse due to changes in gait that may lead to more serious
problems. At the same time, if I just stop with the horse, he will
decondition, making strong works or competition increasingly dangerous.
My goal is to keep the horse reasonably ontrack, despite my stupidity, by
easing some of the aches and pains I've caused--without doing damage due to
side-effects of powerful drugs--and without doing damage by working a lame,
ill-gaited horse. To the extent that MSM or GAGs allow this, there is benefit
to the horse.
In an endurance contest, this concept is mitigated by the possibility that a
lame horse would compete, doing further damage. Not good. MSM could be
questionable in this context, but certainly not on the same level as NSAIDs
or corticosteroids. For one thing, MSM does no damage in and of itself--that
I know of. For another, MSM is at best a modest anti-inflammatory.
It is certain that an endurance ride is going to cause muscle damage and
inflammation--during the event. Inflammation is the repair process in
action--to an extent, it's good. To the extent that it produces discomfort
during such an event, though, it's bad.
Now, let me make it clear here that I sell no nutritional products to
endurance people and will volunteer not to sell any nutritional products to
anyone on this list or anyone involved in endurance, just to keep the "greed"
factor out of this discussion. My company manufactures no products--just
retails them. I have no agenda at all concerning MSM because I believe there
are better ways of attacking the problems MSM attacks. This industry is no a
part of my market--it's just full of folk thinking hard about conditioning
and nutrition--unique among the equine sports.
However, I would prefer that MSM be considered "innocent until proven guilty"
rather than the other way around. I would also prefer that enhanced
performance be also thus considered. Enhanced performance is not the enemy,
it is the goal. Enhanced performance at the expense of the competition is the
goal (if it is a competition we're talking about here). Enhanced performance
at the expense of the horse is the enemy.
ti