High intake of sugars and starch, low number of meals and low roughage intake are associated with Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome in a Belgian cohort.
Authors: Galinelli Nicolas, Wambacq Wendy, Broeckx Bart J G, Hesta Myriam
Journal: Journal of animal physiology and animal nutrition
Summary
# Editorial Summary Equine gastric ulcer syndrome remains a significant clinical concern with often vague presentations, yet mounting evidence implicates dietary management as a modifiable risk factor. Researchers at Ghent University analysed nutritional records from 27 horses diagnosed with gastric ulcers and 21 healthy controls between 2013–2018, quantifying forage intake, meal composition, and daily sugar and starch consumption to identify patterns associated with disease. Whilst total daily sugar and starch intake showed no statistical difference between groups, the diseased horses consumed substantially more sugars and starch per meal (1.85 g/kg bodyweight versus 1.06 g/kg, p<0.001), and the ulcer cohort received significantly less forage overall (1.27% versus 1.39% of bodyweight on a dry matter basis). These findings suggest that meal frequency and portion size of concentrate feeds may be equally—if not more—important than total daily intake when formulating diets for ulcer-prone individuals. Practitioners should prioritise increasing meal frequency with modest concentrate portions whilst maintaining minimum forage thresholds, as this dietary architecture appears more protective than simply meeting average daily nutrient requirements.
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Practical Takeaways
- •Divide concentrate meals into smaller portions to reduce sugar and starch per meal—clinical EGUS cases averaged 1.85 g/kg BW per meal compared to healthy horses at 1.06 g/kg BW
- •Ensure minimum forage intake is met; affected horses averaged only 1.27 %DM/BW versus 1.39 in healthy controls—review feeding protocols to meet absolute minimum requirements
- •Total daily sugar/starch intake alone may not predict EGUS risk; meal frequency and meal composition matter more than daily totals
Key Findings
- •Control horses had significantly higher forage intake (1.39 %DM/BW) compared to EGUS cases (1.27 %DM/BW; p≤0.05)
- •Sugars and starch intake per meal was significantly higher in EGUS group (1.85 g/kg BW/meal) versus controls (1.06 g/kg BW/meal; p<0.001)
- •No significant differences were found in total daily sugars and starch intake between groups (p=0.18)
- •Low forage intake below recommended minimum and high sugar/starch intake per meal were most commonly associated with EGUS in this Belgian cohort