Effect of Olive Oil Administration on Certain Hematologic and Metabolic Parameters in Pregnant Rats

Objective: Paucity of data on effect of olive oil intake on various hematologic and metabolic parame ters in humans or animals have prompted us to assess t he effect of oral administration of different doses of this oil on various hematologic and metabolic par ameters in pregnant rats. Material and Methods: Pregnant Sprague Dawley rats were given oral doses of 1 ml, 2 ml and 4 ml olive oil twice per day in divided doses, for 20 days re spectively. Control group of pregnant rats were gi ven normal drinking water. Oral feeding of oil was don e continuously for the study period and at the end of the study period the animals were lightly anaesthet ized with ether and sacrificed to collect blood sa mples for analysis. Various hematologic parameters such a s red blood cell (RBC) count, white blood cell (WBC) count, hemoglobin (Hg), platelets, lymphocyte s and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) were analyzed by a Hematology Blood Analyzer while metabolic parameters such as cholesterol, triglycerides, urea,uric acid,creatini ne and protein were analyzed by specific analytic al kits. Activities of antioxidant enzymes, superoxide dism utase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX) were assessed by specific analytical kits. Statistical analysis of data was performed using a SPSS data analytical package. Results: Oral administration of olive oil for 20 continuous days did not significantly alter any of the hematologic parameters studied in Pregnant Rats, compared to control group even when the oil was administered at a relatively massive dose of 4 ml/d ay. Administration of olive oil appeared to decre ase WBC, Hb , platelet and lymphocyte blood concentr ations in treated rats , but statistically significant difference (ANOVATest; p 0.05) compared to those of control rats. SOD level and GPX level in blood of oil- tanimal groups were not significantly diffe rent (ANOVA test ; p>0.05) compared to control group. Co nclusion: We conclude that oral administration of olive oil in pregnant rats, even in massive dose s does not cause any significant alterations in hematologic and metabolic parameters and may offer potential benefit although a slight decrease in platelet count was observed which needs further inv estigation. Further detailed studies are in progres s