Article ID: 2667
Aim: Dietary fats may affect coronary artery disease risk by influencing factors other than serum cho-lesterol. The effect of diets containing coconut oil and sunflower oil without cholesterol supplemen-tation on oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation were studied in male New Zealand White rabbits.Methods: Animals assigned to four groups (control, cholesterol-fed, coconut oil-fed and sunflower oil-fed), given an isocaloric diet and studied for 6 months. The lipid profile, reduced glutathione, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, vitamin C and lipid peroxidation were evaluated at the beginning of the study, at the third month and at the end of the study period.Results: Serum lipid values did not show significant variation between animals fed coconut oil and sunflower oil, but total cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol were significantly higher and HDL-cholesterol was reduced in cholesterol-fed animals. Lipid peroxidation was higher in choles-terol-fed and sunflower oil-fed rabbits compared to controls and coconut oil-fed rabbits. Though other parameters such as reduced glutathione, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase and ascorbate did not vary between the two oil-fed rabbit groups, cholesterol-fed rabbits showed severe oxidative stress.Conclusion: We conclude that in the absence of cholesterol supplementation, coconut oil intake up to 30% of daily energy supply did not cause hypercholesterolemia or oxidative stress in rabbits.