The acute and sub-chronic toxicity of cooked taro leaves (pinangat) and smoked fish (tinapa) were assessed in mice. In the acute oral toxicity study, animals received a dose of pinangat and tinapa at 400, 800, 1600 and 3200 mg/kg bw. Corn oil served as the vehicle control. Results revealed no mortality in all the control and treated groups and the no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) for pinangat is 400-1600 mg/kg whereas, NOAEL for tinapa is 400-800 mg/kg. Signs of toxicity as manifested in terms of sickness-like behaviour: lethargy and mild ataxia were observed in the group given with the highest dose of pinangat and medium dose of tinapa. During the 60-d sub-chronic toxicity study, the animals were gavaged daily with graded doses of pinangat and tinapa. Biochemical analyses revealed significant increase in the total blood cholesterol, VLDL, and triglycerides of the smoked fish treated mice at 1500 mg/kg. Hepatorenal enzymes were also significantly elevated in all the treated groups compared to the control. Results of pinangat treatment revealed no significant change in the lipid profile and hepatorenal markers of all treated mice. However, creatinine (umol/L) was significantly elevated in the group given with 3500 mg/kg pinangat. The results of the study suggest food safety of the food products when taken at appropriate doses however, findings also confirm the adverse effects of excess dietary salt loading on kidney and liver.
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