Nutraceuticals and Animal Physiology: Performance and Welfare

Dear Colleagues,

Nutraceutical is a broad term coined from “nutrition” and “pharmaceutical” and refers to “nondrug substance that is produced in a purified or extracted form, administered orally to provide agents required for normal body structure and function, with the intent of improving the health and well-being of animals”. Nutraceuticals are feed or part of a feed that provides health benefits, including the prevention and/or treatment of a disease. Veterinary nutraceutical medicine has been defined as “the use of micronutrients, macronutrients and other nutritional supplements as therapeutic agents”. The use of conventional therapies, as pharmaceutical products in association with diet and nutraceuticals, is the goal of integrative veterinary medicine in order to improve health conditions and wellness in patients, but also to improve behavior, performance, and food quality. Nutraceuticals are generally very safe to use, because of poor adverse effects, and may be used as a primary therapy or added to conventional medicine. An increasing number of veterinarians is prescribing nutraceuticals in their practice. Indeed, the mechanisms by which nutraceuticals act on animals’ metabolism, including hematology, blood profile, and endocrine status, often need to be elucidated. The topic is of great interest for almost all species, including companion animals, livestock, and animal models.

Prof. Dr. Pietro Lombardi
Dr. Nadia Musco
Dr. Claudia Gatta
Collection Editors

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