The deterioration of cod liver oil and the diet of children

Fat Metabolism and the Sprue Syndrome

“…Stannus (1942) suggested that dietary factors might have some causative role in tropical sprue. The inclusion of rancid fats in the diet causes diarrhoea, anaemia, and destruction of dietary vitamins (Whipple, 1932;Burr and Barnes, 1943;Gyorgi et al, 1942). The possible significance of rancid dietary fats in the onset of tropical sprue in India was noted by J. M. French.…”

“…It is unlikely that rancidity is a major aetiological factor in non-tropical sprue or in the coeliac syndrome in this country. Diarrhoea has been recently observed in infants in temperate climates receiving rancid cod-liver oil (Whipple, 1936). Rancid fats are readily hydrolysed, and the fatty acids liberated are irritant and are effective stimulants of mucus secretion.…”

Disorders of Fat Absorption

“…3). Rancid cod-liver oil has been reported to have caused an outbreak of gastro-intestinal disorders in a children's hospital (Whipple, 1936). It has been suggested that some factor in the rancid fat causes an excess of mucus secretion by an irritant action (French, 1949) leading to a delay in absorption as seen in coeliac disease and idiopathic steatorrhoea.…”

New Mechanism of Vitamin Deprivation

“…Again, vitamins A and E are readily destroyed by oxidation. Oxidative rancidity of fats included in the diet may destroy these vitamins, with consequent deprivation (Mattill, 1938;Whipple, 1936).…”