Evaluating the Antioxidant Effects of Onion (Allium cepa) on Blood Biochemical Factors and Antioxidants after Consuming Tartrazine in Rats.

Abstract

Colors have been added to food naturally and artificially for centuries to make them look more appetizing. According to the Food and Drug Organization, eight artificial colors were registered for the nutrition application, one of them, is tartrazine, which is widely used in foods and cosmetics. Food colors significantly decrease weight and increase proteins, liver enzymes, thyroid hormones, total cholesterol, and triglyceride. Onion, as an antioxidant, can reduce the harmful effects of artificial food colors on weight gain, antioxidant activity, and blood biochemical factors. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of the onion's antioxidant properties on serum biochemical factors and antioxidants in Wistar rats after consuming tartrazine. Eighty Rats were divided into four groups, 20 mice in each. The first group received water without additives and was considered the control, the second group received tartrazine, the third group received tartrazine with onion juice, and the fourth group received only onion juice through gastric gavage. This experiment was performed for 60 days, and then the antioxidant activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), Catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and the biochemical parameters of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) were measured. Tartrazine decreased the antioxidant activities of SOD, CAT, GPx, and the biochemical parameters of HDL and LDL. The results showed that the consumption of tartrazine causes the production of free radicals, which is the reason for the significant reduction of antioxidant activities and serum biochemical factors. Onion, as an antioxidant in this study, reduces the effects of tartrazine on antioxidant activities and serum biochemical factors.