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The science behind
EPO-Equine
EPO-EQUINE: HOW IT WORKS
EPO-Equine safely stimulates your horse’s natural production of the erythropoietin (EPO) hormone. EPO increases red blood cell production and your horse’s body’s oxygen carrying capacity*.
EPO-Equine is a scientifically formulated, patent-pending nutritional horse endurance supplement created with one goal in mind: to help performance horses train and perform at their best.
When we were formulating EPO-Equine, we made sure to include only proven nutrients for increasing EPO and red blood cells. When this happens your horse will experience dramatic gains in endurance and performance*.
The active ingredients in the patent-pending formula address the four major limitations on red blood cell production; namely, EPO levels, red blood cell nutrients, iron availability, and inflammation.
EPO PRODUCTION
Echinacea angustifolia is an herb that stimulates your horse’s immune system and your horse’s kidneys to make more EPO. In the long run, this results in more red blood cells…and peak performance*.
Equine research has shown that not only does Echinacea stimulate the immune system; it is also a blood building agent. Healthy horses that received the herb had higher levels of red blood cells, hemoglobin and white blood cells.
Red blood cells carry oxygen to muscle tissue, and the more oxygen there is, the harder a muscle can work. When you increase the number of red blood cells in your horse, you increase the amount of oxygen in the horse’s blood; this can dramatically improve your horse’s performance*.
A daily dose of EPO-Equine endurance horse supplement provides an extract of echinacea augustifolia in the amounts shown to significantly increase red blood cell production in horses. This research was published in a peer-reviewed veterinary journal.1
RED BLOOD CELLS
To help your horse produce more red blood cells, you have to feed it the right raw materials. That’s why our scientists developed a specific formula of vitamins and minerals that ensure additional EPO results in extra red blood cells.
Here’s how certain vitamins and minerals can bolster red blood cell production:
Vitamin B-6 (Pyrodixine): A red blood cell is useless without hemoglobin. That’s because hemoglobin is the part of a red blood cell that oxygen attaches to. Research published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry2,3 discovered that vitamin B6 is essential for hemoglobin to form. In other words, if your horse does not get enough vitamin B6, the horse’s red blood cells can’t carry the oxygen your horse needs.
B-12 and Folic Acid: If your horse is deficient in either vitamin B-12 or folic acid5,6 new red blood cells are “born” misshapen and malfunctioning. This can actually make oxygen transport worse than before. That’s why your horse needs to get supplemental doses of both B12 5,6 and Folic Acid. Your horse’s red blood cells will become the hard-working oxygen carriers they are supposed to be.
Vitamin B-3: Here’s another vitamin that your horse needs in order to pump out new, healthy red blood cells. A daily dose of Vitamin B-37 helps your horse produce new red blood cells at a faster clip.
Boron: Boron might not get a lot of press, but it’s emerging as a mineral that can help your horse. Its beneficial effects stem from the fact that boron can naturally help your horse’s body make more red blood cells than it could without extra Boron8.
Inositol: Your horse may be making more red blood cells, but it doesn’t mean that they’ll last. In fact, the lifespan of red blood cells is about 90 days. By taking Inositol 9,10 you’ll be creating stronger red blood cells – making them work longer for your horse*.
IRON AVAILABILITY COMPLEX
In reality, oxygen doesn’t bind directly to the red blood cell – it binds to the iron in hemoglobin in the red blood cell. Therefore, your horse needs several sources of dietary iron to make functioning red blood cells.
Iron: Proper iron intake ensures that red blood cells properly carry oxygen around the body. It’s been shown in numerous research studies that iron deficiency impairs oxygen transport and athletic performance. In fact, iron11 isn’t an ingredient that’s merely optimal for enhancing endurance – it’s absolutely necessary.
Dandelion12 and Yellow Dock13: To get even more iron, it’s important for your horse to take these natural botanical extracts from two of the most iron-dense plants: dandelion and yellow dock. These two herbs ensure that your horse’s body gets enough iron for its brand new red blood cells.
Vitamin C, Vitamin B3, and Nickel: It’s one thing to take extra iron, but absorbing it from the gut is something else altogether. Believe it or not, but your horse’s body only absorbs about 10% of the iron that it eats. That is unless you supplement with vitamin C 14,15, vitamin B316 and Nickel 17 – a trio of nutrients that help your horse’s body absorb more of the iron that it consumes.
ANTI-INFLAMATORY COMPLEX (ANTI-OXIDANTS)
After a particularly tough workout or competition your horse’s body has taken a big hit. Its muscles are worn and torn, its energy reserves are depleted, and its joints are flaring up from stress and strain. Your horse’s body has one, and one way only, of dealing with all of this: inflammation.
Although inflammation is essential for recovery in small doses–unchecked inflammation makes recovering a real challenge. If you’ve ever had a period of time where your horse’s training suffered and it took forever to bounce back, it’s likely that inflammation was the culprit.
Worse yet, unchecked inflammation makes your horse’s body more prone to oxidation – a harmful process shown to get in the way of new muscle growth and adaptation to training. Not only that, but inflammation and oxidation can be roadblocks to new red blood cell development – causing a vicious cycle that slows your horse’s training.
Luckily, there are a handful of nutrients that are able to combat exercise-induced oxidation and inflammation; allowing your horse to move easier and increase your horse’s EPO production*
Alpha Lipoid Acid: ALA 18,19 fights both inflammation and oxidation.
Lutein: Lutein20 is one of the most powerful antioxidants. Lutein can effectively fight oxidation and inflammation all over your horse’s body.
Lycopene: Like Lutein, Lycopene21 has been intensely researched. Lycopene, found in tomatoes, fights oxidation through a number of different pathways. This makes it a preferred antioxidant for performance horses.
Choline: Choline22 is an amazing antioxidant. Not only does it fight oxidative damage, but according to a study out of the University of Lisbon, it actually improves blood flow and nitric oxide (NO) production. In case you didn’t know, nitric oxide is one of the most important chemicals for improving muscle contraction and increasing blood flow to muscles.
PABA: Along with its trademark antioxidant properties, PABA23 is able to make blood vessels more fluid – helping blood (and oxygen) travel to your horse’s fatigued muscles.
Although this cutting edge research is astounding, until very recently, it wasn’t the least bit practical.
That is until a team of biomedical engineers at Biomedical Research Laboratories came together to design a supplement for endurance performance horses to help them naturally and safely boost EPO and red blood cells*.
“We have had excellent results since using EPO-EQUINE and find when having regular blood test that our horses red blood cell counts are consistently high. We have used this product for over 2 years now and have no reason to change this winning combination.”
– Mick and Sheelagh Lord, Owners of Rhyds Art – Winner, Breeder Crown, UK and Ireland
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