Egg Yolk induces High Blood Pressure in Wistar Rats

Hypertension constitutes a major risk factor for
several cardiovascular diseases such as
atherosclerosis, heart failure, renal insufficiency,
coronary artery disease and stroke. The risk factor
increases with age in both sexes. According to WHO,
about one-third of the world’s population suffers
from hypertension and the incidence has been
increasing at a rapid rate due to life style
modification. This study is aimed at investigating the
effect of egg yolk on blood pressure of Wistar rats. To
achieve this, twenty Wistar rats weighing between
200 and 220 g were obtained and divided into 2
groups of ten each. Animals in group 1 received a
special prepared egg feed diet (24 egg yolk mixed
with 1 kg of normal rat diet) while those in group 2
received normal feed diet and they served as the
control group. The animals were fed orally for 21
consecutive days and had access to drinking water ad
libitum. Blood pressure of each of these groups was
determined on day 0, 7, 14 and 21 respectively. No
significant difference was observed in the blood
pressure of animals in both the control and
experimental groups prior to treatment. However, the
blood pressure of animals treated with egg yolk
significantly increased after 7, 14 and 21 days of
treatment respectively with 21 days having the
highest blood pressure. From this result, egg yolk
significantly increased blood pressure and thus has
the propensity to induce hypertension. Excessive
consumption of egg should be discouraged in people
with high risk of cardiovascular diseases