Influence of Magnesium Deficiency on Serum Cholesterol Levels in the Rat

¹ From the Yale Nutrition Laboratory, Department of Biochemistry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut

Magnesium-deficient, high-fat and high-carbohydrate diets containing 5 mg magnesium/100 gm were fed to weanling albino rats in order to learn more about the possible relationship between magnesium and lipid metabolism. After 10 weeks of feeding, the blood cholesterol levels of the fat-fed male rats were significantly higher than those fed the carbohydrate diet. The differences between the two female groups were not so pronounced. Serum protein levels decreased in both high-fat and high-carbohydrate-fed animals; the decrease was more evident in the latter groups. Retardation of growth was more pronounced in the groups fed the high-fat diet.