EFFECT OF SOME THERAPY FUNCTIONAL FOODS ON BONE HEALTH IN OSTEOPOROTIC RATS

This study was conducted to demonstrate the effect of feeding on defatted soy bean and flaxseed flour as protein and phytoestrogen sources; broccoli and red cabbage as antioxidant sources; in addition to skimmed milk powder as a calcium source in prevention of bone loss and cell damage that usually accompanies aging process. Raw materials were subjected to proximate analysis and biologically evaluation on ninety six 4 month aged female albino rats. Eight rats were regarded as an initial group. Other eight rats were hold as a normal negative control group and fed on a basal diet. The remaining rats were ovariectomized and fed on low calcium diet for 8 weeks to produce osteoporosis model. Osteoporotic rats were divided into 9 groups (each of 8 rats) fed on standard diet supplemented with: I) soy bean flour, II) soy bean flour and broccoli, III) soy bean flour and red cabbage, IV) soy bean flour and mixture of broccoli and red cabbage, V) defatted flaxseed, VI) defatted flaxseed and broccoli, VII) defatted flaxseed and red cabbage, VIII) defeated flaxseed and mixture of broccoli and red cabbage. Skimmed milk powder and vitamin D were added to the diet of each tested group. One group was kept as a positive control and fed on a standard diet. The results showed a decreases in body weight, changes in relative weight of kidney and liver organs, physical properties of bone, also decreases in serum and bone minerals including; calcium, magnesium and phosphorus in osteoporotic model .A decreasing in estradiol and increasing in parathyroid hormone as a bone marker were also found. Results observed in tested groups showed that the highest recovery for the parameters were found in group IV which fed on standard diet supplemented with soy bean flour and mixture of broccoli and red cabbage followed by group VIII which fed on standard diet supplemented with defatted flaxseed and a mixture of broccoli and red cabbage. Therefore, it could be concluded that the aforementioned mixtures may be a promising sources to produce a functional food for prevention of bone loss and cell damage.