[Pregnant rats consuming diets with uncooked and fried olive oil, mineral levels in their offspring and changes in their body storage levels].

Some parameters relating nutritional utilization of Ca, Mg, Fe and Zn were studied in rats fed with diets including raw and fried fats in order to study more in depth the diet fat/mineral utilization interaction. Wistar rats having initial weights of 176 g were divided into two groups and fed isocaloric diets having 15% fat content as raw olive oil and fried olive oil (from 15 potato fryings), during pregnancy. Weight and dietary intake were controlled and mineral content changes in plasma, liver, spleen and carcass were assessed, as well as litter mineral uptake. Throughout the study, dietary intake of pregnant rats fed raw (R) and fried oil (F), body weight gain and final weight gain were similar. Serum Fe, Zn and Ca levels decreased at a similar rate in both groups. Liver Fe levels decreased more in the F group while spleen Fe decreased more in the R group, these changes started on day 18. Liver Zn levels did not show clear changes but spleen Zn decreased during the last three days of pregnancy. Carcass Ca levels of pregnant rats from the R and F groups did not show any differences at the end of pregnancy. Body weight gain, Ca, Mg, Fe and Zn uptake of the litter were similar in both groups throughout the study. The placentas and the offspring of treated rats showed similar absolute and relative mineralization values. These findings lead us to conclude that fried olive oil retained the same characteristics as raw olive oil regarding mineral utilization.