The Effect of Corn Oil upon the Metabolism of Calcium and Phosphorus by Sheep

Abstract

Twelve wether lambs each weighing approximately 75 lb. were used to determine the effects of corn oil upon the utilization of dietary calcium and phosphorus. The comparative balance and isotope dilution procedures (calcium-45 and phosphorus-32) were used to determine the fecal endogenous calcium and phosphorus excretions. The inclusion of 7.5% corn oil did not significantly affect the apparent digestibility, fecal endogenous excretion, true digestibility or net retention of dietary phosphorus. Neither did it affect the fecal endogenous or urinary excretion of dietary calcium. This level of fat, however, significantly reduced both the apparent and true digestibilities of dietary calcium, the cumulative result being a decrease in the net retention of dietary calcium which closely paralleled the increase in the fecal excretion of calcium. Copyright © . .