| Abstract: | The objective of this study was to determine the health benefits of extra‐virgin and refined olive oils, which are high in mono‐unsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and polyphenolic compounds using the pig as a model. Thirty‐two cross‐bred pigs were individually penned, allocated to one of four dietary treatments and fed ad libitum for 28 days. Two of the experimental diets consisted of a basal diet containing 12% tallow and either 7% sunflower oil (TSO) or 7% extra‐virgin olive oil (TEVO) on a w/w basis. The remaining diets contained 19% extra‐virgin olive oil (EVO) or 19% of refined olive oil (RO). On days 7, 14 and 28 fasted and 3‐h post‐prandial blood samples were taken. Body composition was measured at the beginning and end of the study using dual energy X‐ray absorptiometry. Daily gain, feed intake and lean and fat deposition were not significantly different between the treatments. However, the daily increase in bone mineral density was higher in pigs fed diets containing olive oil (1.23 vs 2.54, 6.28, 5.20 mg cm?2 per day for TSO, TEVO, EVO and RO, respectively, P = 0.050). Both fasting and non‐fasting plasma triglycerides were lower (P = 0.003) in pigs fed MUFA‐rich diets, while the cholesterol profile was not significantly different between the treatments. The results from in vitro copper‐induced lipid peroxidation, expressed in terms of conjugated dienes, showed that low density lipoprotein (LDL) particles in postprandial serum from pigs fed olive oil were moderately more resistant to oxidative modification. In conclusion, these data demonstrate that both extra‐virgin and refined olive oils attenuate postprandial hypertriglyceridaemia, moderately affect oxidation susceptibility and increase bone mineral density in growing pigs. Copyright © 2006 Society of Chemical Industry |
