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Growth and Dietary Pattern of Rats Fed Self-Selection Diets Following Whole-Body Irradiation¹

U. S. Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory, San Francisco, California

The apparent ability of rats to voluntarily select a dietary according to the needs of the body was used in this study to detect possible metabolic derangements subsequent to a dose of 375-rad wholebody x-irradiation. The animals were allowed free choice selections of various foodstuffs offered in separate containers and the relative amounts of food intake as well as body weights were measured daily.

The majority of the rats were able to select diets sufficiently adequate to support normal growth. Upon irradiation at the level used, rats fed a basal premixed diet lost significantly more body weight than similarly treated rats selecting their own diet. In the overall pattern, the proportion of casein selected increased progressively, whereas that of sucrose decreased subsequent to the irradiation. The selections of yeast and corn oil remained essentially the same. On the third day only, after irradiation, the intake of minerals increased to over 5 times the pre-irradiation level. The selection and intake of casein returned to pre-irradiation levels by the third day, whereas the total caloric intake of irradiated rats fed basal and self-selected diets returned to normal levels by the 5th day. Possible explanations for the apparent craving for casein and minerals after the level of irradiation used are discussed briefly.

Manuscript received 10 June 1961.