Recovery after fasting in the rat placed either on spontaneous diet choice or on imposed diet conditions
Piquard, F.; Schaefer, A.; Haberey, P.
Comptes Rendus des Seances de la Societe de Biologie et de ses Filiales 170(2): 469-473
1976
ISSN/ISBN: 0037-9026 PMID: 134819 Document Number: 108625
For 14 days 12 rats were offered simultaneous free choice of gels supplying carbohydrates, protein or lipids; the gels supplied 1.12, 0.76 and 2.16 kcal/g. The rats were starved for 5 days then had the choice offered again. In 22 days they gradually increased total intake of energy, not from protein and mainly from lipids, which exceeded the amount taken before starvation by the first day of refeeding. In the second experiment the choice was of the protein gel and carbohydrate or fat or defined mixtures of carbohydrate and fat 9:1, 1:1 or 1:9. After starvation none of the rats reached their former intake within 22 days. There was some early increase in protein when no lipid or 10% was offered, and of the mixture with 90% lipid.