Biochemical and Histological Effects of Feeding Thermally Oxidized Rapeseed Oil and Lard to Rats
January 1977
in “
PubMed
”
TLDR Feeding rats oxidized rapeseed oil and lard caused weight loss, organ damage, and toxicity symptoms.
The study investigated the effects of feeding thermally oxidized low-erucic acid rapeseed oil (OLE) and lard (OLA) to weanling rats over 28 days. Four groups of rats were used, with two groups receiving oxidized fats and two receiving fresh fats as controls. While feed consumption and efficiency were unaffected, final body weights were lower in the OLA group. Both OLE and OLA increased relative heart weights and total lipids, and caused symptoms of heated fat toxicity, including seborrhea, diarrhea, polyuria, and excessive hair loss. OLA primarily affected polar liver lipids, while OLE caused significant changes in both heart and liver lipids. Histological analysis showed that OLA was particularly harmful to kidneys, whereas OLE caused more damage to hearts and livers.