Safety assessment of <i>Linum usitatissimum</i> (Linn.) Ingestion in New Zealand rabbits

Abstract

Background: The therapeutic safety of herbal medicine is a major concern for consumers and users. After studying the effects of linseed on hair growth in rabbits, the turn is to evaluate its safety by the observation of some clinical, biological and anatomo-pathological aspects.
Materials and Methods: A study was conducted during a period of three months on two groups of rabbits (control and test). Test group daily received feed supplemented with 3g of ground linseed while the control animals received the same feed without any additives. Weekly, rabbits were weighed and monthly blood samples were taken. By the end of the trial, liver and kidneys biopsies were analyzed for histological and cytological lesions.
Results: There was no significant improvement in weight gain in the test group rabbits, in which biochemical parameters had differentially evolved with a decrease in their Glycemia and cholesterolemia. There were also no modifications in their serum hepatic and renal marker enzymes and their liver and kidneys exhibited noticeably normal histology without any anatomically detectable anomalies.
Conclusion: These findings confirm that prolonged linseed ingestion in rabbits is safe.

Key words: Linium usitatissium, rabbit, ingestion, safety.