People feed oil to horses for many reasons: to provide a healthy source of calories not involving sugar and starch, to increase weight or the luster and shine of their coats, and to help bind medications or supplements together in their feed. But not all oils are created equal. As our understanding of equine nutrition has evolved, it is important to understand which oils are best to supplement and which should be avoided.

We worked with a biotech company to create a vegan form of EPA and DHA. So instead of getting it from fish oil, we can harvest it from algae. We now have a vegan source of something that prior to that could only be found in fish. 

Read more about OM3GA® here: https://www.equineelixirs.com/omega

Transcript

HOST: Welcome back to the podcast, Liz.

LIZ: Thanks, always good to be here. 

HOST: We have a lot of information coming at us all the time as humans, as horse owners. What do horses need? How can we help them? It’s just an overwhelming amount of data. So can we talk about oil at its most basic level? Why did people start supplementing their diets with oil? And where has that evolved to? 

LIZ: I think, you know, 10 or 20 years ago, people were probably still feeding corn oil or canola oil. At the most basic level, people would often do that because it’s a good source of fat calories.
It’s a way to put weight on a horse, make their coats look shiny, and help get supplements to stick to their feed and mix it all together.
But as the science has evolved and we know more about equine nutrition, we've learned that the types of oil we used to use are really unhealthy and bad for horses, primarily because they create so much inflammation in the gut and systemically as well. Nobody would feed corn oil anymore because it’s so high in omega-6 and omega-9, which create a ton of inflammation. You really want to be feeding something that’s high in omega-3 fatty acids.

HOST: And the gut has been such a focus in both human and horse research, especially regarding inflammation. I still remember the ads, like 20 years ago, that came out in magazines stating, “75% of show horses have ulcers.” Everyone at the time was like, "What?!"

LIZ: I know. It’s remarkable to think that it wasn’t something we considered back then because now it’s very much top of mind and probably one of the top one or two health issues that people face with their horses, especially show horses. And oil was also just kind of easy to use. 

HOST: I mean, it was easy to go to the store, buy a jug, and put it on your horse's feed. It made stuff a little less dry.It was very practical for a long time, too.

LIZ: Definitely. And I still think that feeding an oil supplement is a very good thing to do and something that a lot of people like to do. It’s just a matter of trying to educate them about what types of oils are good to use and what types of oils they should stay away from. Another complexity is that the marketing materials behind certain oils can lead you to believe you’re doing a good thing by feeding that to your horse. But it turns out the actual ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 or omega-9 fatty acids is completely misbalanced, and you’re doing more harm than good.

HOST: Yeah. So can you dive a little more into the omega-3, omega-6, and omega-9 fatty acids? I think we all hear “omegas” and kind of think, "Oh, that’s good," or we’re told “good fat” or “bad fat” a lot. Tell us a little bit about how those three different omega fatty acids interact with horses.

LIZ: So omega-6 and omega-9 are good in small amounts because they help mount an inflammatory response, which is something horses need to fight off infection and deal with low-level injury. But in high amounts, all that inflammation really creates a lot of damage. And it’s the omega-3 fatty acids that horses really need.
Even within omega-3 fatty acids, there are different types. There’s ALA, which is found in something like flax, and then there’s EPA and DHA. Those strains of fatty acids are the most important and the ones primarily used in the horse’s body for fighting inflammation and regulating insulin.
They reduce inflammation in the gut and throughout the joints. But historically, the source of EPA and DHA was fish oil, and horses are vegan. They’re not designed to eat fish. Fish oil smells bad and tastes bad, so even if you’d like to give it to your horse, you might not be able to get them to eat it. Something that we started doing is working with a biotech company to create a vegan form of EPA and DHA. So instead of getting it from fish oil, we can harvest it from algae. We use a microbrewery to create algae and then harvest the EPA and DHA so that we now have a vegan source of something that previously could only be found in fish.

HOST: That’s amazing to go through all of that because, yeah, you can tell a human to just suck it up and take this fish oil supplement, but you can’t really say that to a horse. 

LIZ: Well, you probably wouldn’t have much luck. There are some fish oil products where they try to mask the taste with different scents and flavors. Some horses might be willing to eat that, but the vast majority do not. Another negative associated with fish oil is that because it’s not vegan, the horse’s system isn’t really designed to digest it. Fish come from the ocean, where there are a lot of natural pollutants now.
If you can harvest the EPA and DHA from algae created in a microbrewery, not only are you avoiding the contaminants of the ocean, but this is a more sustainable way to create this product in the future. We can make a very concentrated form of EPA and DHA, which is more effective than the ALA aspect of omega-3 fatty acids found in something like flax oil. The benefits are that omega-3s are anti-inflammatory, as opposed to omega-6 and omega-9, which are pro-inflammatory.

HOST: It’s interesting, the ratio of everything, because so many people are looking for the answer, and they want to give more. Everything comes from a place of love. But I think a lot of people want to just find the right thing and dump it in. But as you’re saying, it’s all about the ratios between all these things, the balance, and finding the right amount for your horse.

LIZ: Right, so there are a lot of omega fatty acids in grains, supplements, and oils that are marketed as omega fatty acids. But because omega-6 and omega-9 tend to be much cheaper sources of fat, coming from soy or sunflower or canola, those are the unhealthy fats you want to stay away from. But because they are cheaper, they tend to find their way into a lot of products much more easily than the expensive omega-3 fatty acids.
So when you’re looking at your grain and it says, "Great source of omega fatty acids," if you actually look at the breakdown between omega-3, omega-6, and omega-9, most people will be very disappointed to find that if there is any omega-3, it’s probably a very small amount, and it’s probably ALA, not EPA and DHA. 

HOST: So tell us what’s unique about Equine Elixir’s omega product, spelled O-M-3-G-A.

LIZ: Yeah, we use the "3" to be like a backward "E," just a fun play on numbers. The new omega oil we have is unique because not only is the EPA and DHA vegan, as I mentioned, from algae instead of fish oil, but we also combined it with liquid vitamin E, which is a great antioxidant. There are 3,000 IUs of liquid vitamin E per ounce. A lot of oil requires you to feed quite a large amount to get a substantial benefit.
But because ours is so concentrated, you only need to feed one ounce a day. Something else that’s very unique about our oil is that it doesn’t contain any soy. Most of the omega products on the market, even if they do have omega-3, tend to use soy as a carrier.
Not only do many horses have a soy allergy—and we’re seeing more of that—but soy creates tons of inflammation, which we’re trying to avoid. So we don’t use any soy. We have a vegan source of EPA and DHA, and 3,000 IUs of liquid vitamin E per ounce.
We also combine it with sea buckthorn oil, which has been shown in a study in dogs to actually help heal ulcers even faster than omeprazole. So the product overall is designed to reduce inflammation in the gut and joints. EPA and DHA can help regulate insulin for metabolic horses. So there are a lot of people using it for a lot of different reasons.

HOST: The sea buckthorn thing is really interesting because omeprazole is so necessary and so well-used in many barns, as it should be. So having an alternative that potentially could be even better for horses is a really exciting step forward and a scientific advancement.
What kind of changes do you expect to see in horses that have switched to omega? 

LIZ: So oftentimes, it will depend on the condition the horse is in when you start using it. But typically, the types of things you would expect to see are, from the outside at least, improved coat health. It will look shinier and help bring out dapples. The oil can be used to help maintain weight and muscle. If you have a horse that needs extra added weight and muscle, you can always increase the amount you give.
But even at one ounce a day, it’s very effective in helping add and maintain weight and muscle. Now, something that you wouldn’t see, but one of the benefits of the oil, is that it helps regulate insulin, so it’s great for metabolic horses. And because it helps reduce inflammation systemically, horses tend to be more comfortable and have improved levels of soundness.

HOST: The insulin level is also challenging for many horses on the circuit because a lot of products can’t be used while competing.

LIZ: Yeah. So what’s interesting is there have been a lot of studies done in people showing how EPA and DHA can help regulate insulin. So people who are diabetic will often use fish oil for its EPA and DHA to help regulate their own insulin levels. So it’s interesting to see now that we can have that carryover in horses.

HOST: Can you tell us where we can find Omega?

LIZ: Absolutely. It’s available on our website, www.equinelixirs.com. And if you’re located in Wellington, you’re also welcome to come by our storefront, which is located in our warehouse on Fortune Way.

HOST: Liz Ehrlich, thank you so much for joining us again on the podcast.

LIZ: Thanks for having me.