Nutritional and toxicological evaluation of<i>Hibiscus sabdariffa</i> oil and<i>Cleome viscosa</i> oil

Abstract

Abstract Mesta seed oil ( Hibiscus sabdariffa ), like cottonseed oil, contains cyclopropenoid fatty acids (2.9%) and epoxy fatty acids (2.6%) in addition to normal fatty acids found in vegetable oils. Cleome viscosa (Capparidaceae) seed oil is rich in linoleic acid (70%) and free from any abnormal chemical constituents. Nutritional and toxicological evaluations of these two oils were done by multigeneration breeding studies by feeding the respective oils and groundnut oil as control at 10% level in a 20% protein diet with adequate vitamins and minerals. These studies revealed that rats fed mesta oil had inferior growth and reproductive performance and also had altered liver metabolism. Rats fed C. viscosa oil did not show any abnormal growth or reproductive performance or altered liver lipid levels. Thus, these studies indicate that raw or refined mesta oil may not be suitable for human consumption whereas C. viscosa oil can be used safely by humans.