What’s Inside: Turmeric

Turmeric seems to be all the rage in both human and equine circles these days. We chose it for TruBar for its powerful anti-inflammatory properties.

Turmeric is a potent joint, digestive, and skin supplement, among other things. It can even help with seasonal allergies. But most importantly, it has very few side-effects. While many NSAID drugs tout similar benefits to turmeric, they are also littered with warnings and side-effects, and are illegal in many show associations. Most notorious is gastric ulcers. Turmeric, however, not only is easy on the digestive tract, it is actually beneficial to it.

Horses that consume turmeric on a regular basis have more regular digestion and healthier inflammatory response. This includes things like seasonal allergies, skin conditions, and joint pain.

Turmeric is more readily absorbed when fed with black pepper, so we added some of that too! Why this is we aren’t really sure, but it has been shown that black pepper can increase absorption of curcumin, the active part of turmeric, into the bloodstream by up to 2,000%.

An important note on turmeric however, is that it can be harmful when given WITH a Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory drug (NSAID), like Equioxx, Previcox, or Bute. This is because these drugs often have a blood thinning quality, as does turmeric. When used on its own turmeric is safe for the average horse’s circulatory system, but when used with a NSAID it can damage various internal organs and cause overly thin blood. If your horse is currently taking a NSAID, sadly turmeric is not recommended.

We have turmeric to thank for the joint and inflammatory health of our horses, and we think you’ll love it too. 

https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/features/benefits-turmeric-for-horses-523592

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/turmeric-and-black-pepper#curcumin-absorption