Hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia have been implicated in the pathogenesis of osteochondrosis (Glade et al., 1984; Ralston, 1995). More specifically, foals that experience an exaggerated and sustained increase in circulating glucose or insulin in response to a carbohydrate (grain) meal may be predisposed to development of osteochondrosis.

Rutledge, A. M., K. F. Knowlton and L. A. Lawrence. 2001. Bone mineral content and mobilization in early lactation cows. John Lee Pratt Animal Nutrition Report for 2000-2001.

Hoffman, R. M., J. A. Wilson, L. A. Lawrence, D. S. Kronfeld, W. L. Cooper and P. A. Harris. 2001. Supplemental calcium does not influence radiographic bone mineral content of growing foals fed a fat-and-fiber supplement. In: Proc. 17th Equine Nutrition and Physiology Society. Lexington, Ky. May 31 – June 2. pp.122. Access online.

The effect of aluminum supplementation on nutrient digestibility and macro- and micromineral balance was studied in balance trials in mature Thoroughbred horses. It is concluded that short-term consumption of a diet containing 930 ppm aluminum has negligible effect on nutrient digestibility and mineral metabolism in horses.

Very little research has been conducted to determine the trace mineral requirements for athletic horses. The objectives of this study were to
1) determine the digestibility and retention of copper, zinc and manganese over four different levels of intake (basal, 50% of NRC added, 100% of NRC added, and 200% of NRC added) and 2) determine how regular exercise and training alters the requirements for these trace minerals. Results of the present study suggest that exercise training results in a higher requirement for Zn, but does not affect the true digestibility and maintenance requirements of Cu and Mn in mature Thoroughbred horses.

Previous studies in our laboratory demonstrated a marked glycemic response when
horses were fed a fiber mix consisting of equal parts rice bran, soy hulls, wheat bran, and
soaked beet pulp (Pagan et al. 1999). We speculated that, in part, the beet pulp portion of
this fiber mix was responsible for the increase in plasma glucose concentrations after
meal ingestion. We further hypothesized that the magnitude of the glycemic response to
beet pulp would depend on how the beet pulp was prepared.

Most performance horses train and compete under a variety of stressful conditions
that adversely affect health and performance. Feeding management is of critical
importance to reduce many of these problems.

Fike, J. H., C. Teutsh, O. Abague, and L. A. Lawrence. 2000. Assessing the productivity and nutritive value characteristics of newly available warm and cool-season grasses. Project No. 404. Virginia Agriculture Council.

Fat has become a popular feed ingredient in performance horse rations. There are
a number of different fat sources available for use in horse feeds, and many of these such
as soybean oil and rendered animal fat have been extensively studied, Therefore, this study was conducted to compare the digestibility of several fat sources and evaluate how well they functioned as energy sources for horses
during exercise.

Performance horses compete in a wide variety of athletic events ranging from high speed racing to 100 mile endurance rides. These types of exercise are known to induce oxidative stress, leading to the generation of free radicals.