Detoxing, detoxifying, draining, removing waste, cleaning and purifying the horse
What does it mean if you are going to detox, detoxify, drain, remove waste, cleanse and purify the blood ?? And what do you do then? Detoxing, of course, starts with what you put in your body (yours and your horse's). The less 'waste` that comes in, the less has to go out.
How do waste products occur?
Waste is mainly absorbed through food, such as pesticides in hay and grass if it grows next to sprayed land, poisonous plants in the hay, excess sugars and starch in concentrates, poor quality roughage (which can damage the intestinal flora). the formation of toxins and lactic acid in the intestines, mouldy roughage can contain toxins), contamination of drinking water and giving medication. But also with training the horse, especially with excessive training, there are also many waste products (especially lactic acid) that have to be removed again.
Replace, clean up and assemble
In the body's normal metabolism, waste is also produced, such as free radicals (usually oxygen ions that can damage molecules) and carbon dioxide. The body is constantly in a process of replacing, healing, clearing and building up all cells in the body. This process does not so much release harmful substances, such as toxins, but it is a clean-up reaction of old and damaged cells, which is essential to keep the body healthy. A frequently heard argument is - doesn't the body excrete toxins? Is that not enough?
When is it not enough?
Yes, of course the body does a lot, otherwise we would not be able to survive. But sometimes that does not work well or there is an abundance of waste or toxins that the body can no longer discharge and then it accumulates in the organs or is stored. Unfortunately, there is not a specific substance that we can add that can take over the detoxification of the body, this is done through various processes in the body, namely by the excretion, conversion and collection (binding) of the waste.
How does detoxing work?
Excretion via fluid or drainage is via the urine (kidneys and bladder) or via faeces (liver and bile), breathing (lungs) and sweat (skin). For this, the substances must first be ready to be excreted by being converted to a water-soluble substance or to be linked to another substance that is easily excreted. This is particularly what the liver does with the hundreds of enzymes that are located there. The collection mainly concerns free radicals, these are released during the metabolism and can be rendered harmless by the well-known antioxidants.
When do problems arise?
These processes run smoothly under a 'normal' load, but the capacity of all excretion and conversion processes is not endless. The capacity of the kidneys, for example, is very dependent on the moisture balance, there must be enough water available to dissolve and drain the waste. The liver enzymes responsible for converting also have differences in capacity or presence, which is why walnuts, potatoes and onions are not toxic to humans, but are so to horses. These differences also exist per race and perhaps also per individual.
How do you maintain health?
All the factors known as things needed to stay healthy also have an effect on the body's detoxification capacity: nutrition and gut health, breathing, exercise (circulation, lymph system, fascia), body condition, lack of sleep and chronic pain or stress. So how do you help detoxify the body as best as possible? Make sure the load is as little as possible by taking good care of it! If this does not work for a long time for various reasons, you can help the body. Not by taking over detoxification, but by supporting these processes. For example, you can give substances that trap toxins in the intestines. Mycotoxins from fungi that can be in the food or the toxins that are released by a disrupted intestinal flora. These are often clay types or activated carbon that bind these substances to them and take them out again via the stool. This is a passive process in which nothing is absorbed by the intestines.
Improving moisture management and blood flow will accelerate the removal of substances from areas where damage has occurred and the removal of the converted products in the liver.
Fat can be annoying ...
Various substances, including medication, are stored in fat cells. Logically, the more fat, the more it can store. Normally there is a balance in fat cells between production and degradation, but with excessive condition, substances can remain in fat cells for a longer period because they only build up or are no longer broken down properly. For example, this process causes stiffness or laminitis in horses that have been overweight for a long time and are going to lose weight. You often see that horses lose most of their fat reserves in winter, this is very healthy because everything stored there is also processed again.
Sympathetic and parasympathetic
With (chronic) stress and pain, the body is constantly 'on'. Stress and pain are signals that stimulate the body to take action, preferably to get away from the stress and pain. If this is not possible, the body will get stuck. The unconscious nervous system is divided into 2 modes: parasympathetic and sympathetic. Parasympathetic is the restorative position, there is rest and therefore time to focus on the digestion, renewal and replacement of cells and cleaning the body. Sympathetic is the survival mode, where energy is directed to processes that are needed to fight, flee or search (for food): the heart, the brain and the muscles. Even with effort and concentration, the body goes into this position, so this happens (usually) daily. Problems only arise when the balance is lost due to the presence of pain and stress, because the body no longer takes time to recover and clean up. You can also influence detoxification in this way, by removing these factors as much as possible.
What does the horse`s body produce itself?
Antioxidants, essential for the protection of the cells, are partly produced by the body itself, but we can also add extra to the diet. Vitamin C, for example, is a natural antioxidant that is present in many plants. Unlike humans, the horse (and most other animals) is capable of producing it. With long-term illness or stress or regular strenuous exercise, it may be useful to add vitamin C if the horse's stock is not sufficient. This of course also applies to other antioxidants.
We therefore support detoxification by:
Offering the right nutrients (vitamins & minerals, such as salt)
Adding elements and nutrients that further support these processes: toxin binders, antioxidants (vitamins, flavonoids)
Avoiding toxins as much as possible
Offer / absorb enough clean water
Stimulate circulation, fascia and the lymphatic system, firstly by much gentle movement
Give the horse enough time to recover from training and stressful situations
Removing as many obstacles as possible in the way of recovery: pain and stress
Keeping the body in good shape (not too fat, not too lean)
Balanced use of medication - only when necessary and for as long as necessary
Our specialty: herbs, what do they do?
Many herbs have pre-eminently active ingredients and properties that support and stimulate the actions and functions of the liver, kidneys, urinary tract and bladder, help to drain fluid and waste products and purify the blood through the liver. Many herbs contain antioxidants, which also help protect and repair liver cells. Some herbs promote kidney flushing by increasing urine production. This is one of the reasons to give horses herbal mixes, so that you offer them enough options to keep their body pure and healthy.
A continuous process…
As you have read this is a continuous process, so also something they need on a daily basis. With only grass, hay, roughage products, concentrates or a vitamin & mineral feed you are offering the basics. But you are not giving the horse the extra capacity to detoxify at a higher load of waste than 'normal'. There are too few types of plants in these products for the necessary and different actions that are useful in the body. The herb mixes not only contain 'special' herbs, but also ordinary plants such as strawberry and raspberry leaves, blackberry leaves, birch leaves and willow bark.
The lack of diversity of substances in the diet often starts a wide variety of problems. From mudfever to stiffness, from listlessness to not wanting to work out due to a painful back because of the kidneys and all kinds of diseases due to an overloaded immune system (these also do a lot of cleaning up). You name it….
The Horse Therapist supplies custom-made herb mixes, whereby the needs of the individual horse indicate which herbs are needed. Not only can you give the whole plant, leaf or flower, you can also use homeopathic remedies that contain an extract of the plant to help detox or drain or to support the organs.
Anouk Wiertz & Jente Driessen
Translated by Sharon Bronsveld