The Effect of Guava on the Improvement of Lipid Profile in Hypercholesterolemic Rats

Abstract

Red guava is a fruit species with high vitamin C content and the highest fibers, in particular, soluble fiber (pectin) among tropical fruits and cereals. The soluble fiber is hypocholesterolemic in the body. Therefore, it has the potential to reduce cholesterol content. This study aimed to assess the potential of red guava in reducing cholesterol content in hypocholesterolemic rats. This study applied a pure experiment using a randomized pretestposttest group design on hypocholesterolemic Sprague Dawley rats. The rats were fed with 0.72 g of red guava and pectin supplement as a comparison. The total cholesterol content, LDL, HDL and triglyceride were measured by CHOD-PAP and GPO-PAP methods. Data analysis used t-test and ANOVA with significance rate of 0.05. Red guava intake to the hypocholesterolemic rats significantly reduced the contents of: total cholesterol to 57.8 mg/dL (32%), LDL to 25.5 mg/dL (43%), triglyceride to 19.7 mg/dL (18%). Conversely, it significantly increased HDL content to 10.6 mg/dL (18%). The red guava has proven to give hypocholesterolemic effect by reducing the total cholesterol LDL and triglyceride; Conversely, it significantly increased HDL.