Toxicological Study on Albino Rat Fed Rich-Fibre Food from Orange (<i>Citrus sinensis </i>Linn.) Pomace, Soyameal and Wheat Bran

The concentration of phenolics and fibres in the orange pomace suggests that it could serve as an ingredient in novel food. lncrease in consumers demand for functional foods with natural origin like pomace is also on the increase. However, the possible toxicological effect has to be investigated. Orange pomace, wheat bran, and soyameal of different ratios were subjected to extrusion (5Kg per cycle) at fixed cooking temperature (110°C) and screw speed (290 rpm). The extrudates were tested on forty male <i>Wistar</i> rats for toxicity for 28 days. Data were analyzed using ANOVA at α0.05. Tested diets on <i>Wistar</i> rats resulted in lower weight gain which was at variance with the control diet. White blood cells (5283 – 6400 (x 10<sup>9</sup>), creatine (0.63 – 0.70 mg/dL) and glucose (135.3 – 139.7 mg/dL) showed no significant difference between rats fed control and tested diets. Necrosis was not found in the kidney and liver of the rats fed with control and tested diets. The absence of toxic effects on the rat suggested that the food could be consumed for its health-promoting benefit in addition to eliminating environmental pollution by orange pomace. Extrusion of these raw materials yielded products which could contribute significant portion of fibre to human diet without adverse effect especially those that want to control their weight.