Glossary
Subclinical deficiency.
Direct answer
A subclinical deficiency is a supply below requirement that has already altered stores or biochemical measures while no visible sign is present. Such a state is picked up through laboratory values, functional markers or ration calculation, and sits between adequate supply and a fully developed deficiency picture.
Subclinical does not mean harmless, but neither does it mean proven: a single value below a reference interval is not evidence on its own. Reference intervals describe a comparison group rather than a threshold of disease, and many markers vary with laboratory, method, time of day and exertion. Repeated measurements in context weigh far more.
In horses the origin of the forage matters greatly, because mineral content depends on soil, location and time of harvest, so a whole yard can share the same supply pattern. In humans, a mixed diet drawn from many regions evens things out, while individual habits weigh more heavily. The route to suspicion therefore differs markedly.
The evidence letter
Once a month: new syntheses, checked studies, and what has changed in the state of the evidence.