Nutraceuticals are natural dietary supplements that can be used to treat specific syndromes or to improve overall health and resistance to disease. They are as a rule very safe and have few side effects compared with conventional pharmaceuticals. They include nutrients, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, amino acids, and plant and animal extracts. We carry a variety of these products at our clinic.

Free radicals are unstable oxygen molecules that have a missing or unpaired electron. They are damaging because they attach onto other cells in an attempt to find another electron to become stable. In doing so, they can destroy cell membranes, connective tissues, and disrupt important physiological processes. Free radicals have been implicated in many degenerative conditions, including heart, liver, and kidney disease, arthritis, and cancer.

Antioxidants are natural substances that help clear toxins from the body at the cellular level. They protect the body from the formation of free radicals by giving up electrons. Supplementing with antioxidants can halt free radical damage, boost immunity, speed healing, and slow the aging process. They are beneficial for all geriatric animals.

Enzymes and probiotics are abundant in natural diets of all animals, and play important roles in digestion. Pet food processing destroys these delicate dietary components. As a result your pet may not be absorbing all of the nutrients in it's food. Using enzyme supplements may provide natural relief of skin, digestive, joint, and immune disorders.

The Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids are called essential because they cannot be manufactured by the body and must be supplied by the diet. Research has shown that increased dietary Omega-3 has beneficial effects in heart disease, cancers, diabetes, arthritis, allergies, and skin conditions.

Coenzyme Q10 (also called ubiquinone) is a fat soluable nutrient that is produced naturally in mammals. As an animal ages, natural production drops off significantly. Deficiencies have been associated with gum and heart disease. Coenzyme Q10 also has powerful antioxidant and immune enhancing properties.

Glucosamine is an amino sugar that makes up the building block for glycosaminoglycans (GAG's) including chondroitin sulfate. GAG's give shape, elasticity, and strength to connective tissues throughout the body, including tendons, ligaments, cartilage, synovial fluid, and intervertebral discs. Aging, trauma, and/or inflammation can lead to decreased production of GAG's in the body, which in turn results in joint stress, thinning of synovial fluid, and breakdown of connective tissues. Numerous studies have shown beneficial effects of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate in relieving symptoms of arthritis.