Flaxseed as a Potential Treatment for Allergic Skin Disease in Horses

Recurrent Seasonal Pruritus ("Sweet Itch") in horses is a common complaint with horse-owners, and may indeed represent a significant cost to the equine industry.

Flaxseed is the highest vegetable source of omega-3 fatty acids, and is fed routinely to affected horses by many stable managers. Although research has been conducted, confirming the practice of feeding omega-3 fatty acids to dogs as an effective treatment for atopic skin disease, limited data exist to validate this practice in horses. By demonstrating the efficacy of flaxseed supplementation in reducing the intra-dermal skin-test response of affected horses, new information will be made available to horse-owners about a relatively inexpensive alternative to standard corticosteroid therapy.

When horses were receiving flaxseed, there was a significant reduction in the concentration of some of the long-chain saturated fatty acids in the hair. As hair is composed mainly of protein and minerals, any changes in fatty acids must reflect changes in secretions that come from the skin and are deposited into the hair. These secretions form a waterproof coating that supports many bacteria (called "dermal microflora"), and some skin bacteria are known to metabolise compounds (trans-urocanic acid and histidine) that are involved in immune function. By altering the fatty acids of the skin secretions, it is possible that, in this study, certain populations of bacteria were affected, thereby changing the ability of these bacteria to metabolise these compounds, and reducing the immune response to Culicoides injection. Although it is not possible to confirm that this was the case with our current data, previous research does provide intriguing possibilities for a mechanism of action of the components of flaxseed.

Conclusions:
In this study, Flaxseed had the following effects:

·         improved the average response of atopic horses to a common
skin allergen

·         no adverse effects, as determined by complete blood screens

·         reduced concentration of the long-chain saturated fatty acids in the skin secretions, suggesting a possible mechanism of altered microbial metabolism leading to reduced immune response

Information and Research conducted at the University of Guelph, Ontario. Canada

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