Fluffy science from me, and where can I buy tasteless salt?...

Chloe_GHE

Chloe_GHE

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Was reading my BE mag last night (the bit about electrilytes) and I want to get some tasteless salt, as it seems to be easier to administer, and also breaks down slower in the body so is absorbed through the small intestine not broken down in the stomach BUT I can't find it anywhere.....

Does anyone know where I can get it?...and how much would you feed (added as a solution to hard feed) after an Intro?...

Oh also (sorry just remembered) it said in the article that loss of electrolytes through sweating can also afect temperature fluctuation. I do quite a bit of high energy exercise, get sweaty, then cool off and end up getting really chilled every time, no matter how many clothes/hot baths etc after exercise do you think this applies to humans as well as horses?... or have I made up some fluffy new science!!!!
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I'm going to query this because I don't quite see how you can get tasteless salt. Salt being NaCl (sodium chloride) and the salt taste buds on the tongue detect the sodium. So you can't give sodium chloride salt without tasting it. You can give potassium chloride (KCl) which is Lo-Salt and you shouldn't in theory be able to taste that but it's usually sold as a mixture along with sodium chloride. In addition, I'm going to take issue with the concept of 'breaking down in the stomach'. Electrolytes are soluble and don't break down in the same way as sugars and starch. They are ALL absorbed by the small intestine and not broken down at all as the minute they get into solution in water the ions dissociate, no further metabolism needed. So for what it's worth, I wouldn't bother trying to buy expensive tasteless salt, I'd just get some Lo-salt from Tesco and use that instead as I'm pretty sure it's the same thing! You do need salt when you sweat but I'd have thought a decent salt lick would solve the problem and a tablespoon of electrolyte salt on the day before and after an event would do the trick.
 
Yeah I was a little baffled by it too as to me less taste = less electrolyte % and so defeats the object but I found this site had a link to an article that said this (http://www.sciencesupplements.co.uk/salt-info.html)

"Tasteless Salt as the name suggests is very palatable as its unique coating ensures that it actually tastes of very little other than a mild mint flavour when ingested. In a recent trial many horses would actually take Tasteless Salt from your hand. Tasteless salt will also be gentler on the stomach as its special coating ensures that unlike ordinary salt, it is not readily soluble in the acidic stomach fluid. Ordinary salt and electrolytes will dissolve within 1 minute of reaching the stomach, with an immediate effect on the stomach lining. Tasteless Salt will not break down until it passes out into the small intestine where the coating is broken down by lipase enzymes releasing the sodium and chloride inside for absorption"

I like the idea that it will be kinder on the stomach avoiding the risk of ulcers, and obvs I think a product that tastes slightly of mint rather than salt we be easier to get him to eat BUT is this just another expensive horsey product that really isn't much better than the lo-salt you suggested?...

What are your thoughts is it "snake oil"???....
 
Nice marketing but I'd personally stick with regular salt! It might make a difference but TBH unless your horse has confirmed ulcers that are a real problem, I'd not bother.
 
I think that salt provided in the quantities required for intro level eventing isnt likely to damage the stomach lining- ulcers are either because the stomach wall lining isnt coated by sufficient quantities of feed to protect it from the stomach acid or due to bacterial infection.
The study the've used for their evidence was performed on a small number of horses and they syringed 50g of salt into each horse once an hour for 8 hours- thats pretty intensive!!
 
Have to agree with Kit.. just stick to normal salt.. its cheeper and does the job..

Tha amount of salt in a horses body is madness boss! How to dehydrate a horse in one easy step.

Loux
 
Sounds a bit like someone has reinvented the wheel here. Reading that blurb made me think of "millions" - those fluffy little sweets but with a spec of salt inside!
 
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