How Does Energy Flow Make Your Horse Unhealthy? - The Horse's Advocate Podcast #184

In the last podcast (#183 - How Does Energy Flow Keep Your Horse Alive And Healthy?), the energy potential of the cell is its ability to perform all necessary functions, which was the product of supply (energy flow) and demand (energy resistance). The "sweet spot" for the supply and demand is regulated by the individual. But living in the human world has affected the amount of energy available for cellular functions or the cell's ability to use it (energy resistance). The result can be either too much or too little of each, which results in malfunctioning cells, illness, lameness, and even death.

In this podcast, I look at the flow of energy in a way that allows horse owners to see horses as energy containers, with energy flowing through them from food into movement and then into waste (water and carbon dioxide). This simplicity allows us to identify the friction points that cause illness and poor performance.

The concepts given here are actually simpler than how you think about your horse care now. Clarity allows you to look at your horses (and possibly yourself) with a better understanding of how the body works. Health improvements come specifically from reduced stress and inflammation, which can help your horse perform better and stay healthier.

Timestamps:

0:00 - Introduction and review of Podcast 183. Energy Potential (EP) = Energy Flow (EF) x Energy Resistance (ER), the supply and demand theory, and Energy = mass times the speed of light squared, or E = mc²

3:54 - The 3 cell functions that require energy, all cell functions have a cost, and all cells have a finite maximum amount of energy.

7:23 - Resistance and Energy Flow affect the cell's ability to function.

11:44 - Supply and demand within cells, presented as a math problem: disease is when the product of decreased energy flow and increased energy resistance falls outside of the cell's "sweet spot."

12:35 - Colic in terms of energy.

14:32 - Laminitis in terms of energy.

16:28 - All other diseases in horses in terms of energy.

18:00 - Why increasing food intake doesn't increase cell energy.