Efeitos do consumo de cerveja em ratos tratados com dieta de cafeteria

Abstract

Continuous beer intake may be associated with obesity and behavioral disorders. However, studies point to a beneficial influence of beer on insulin resistance and neuroinflammation. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate whether the consumption of beers, with or without alcohol, has an effect on behavioral and biochemical parameters and the accumulation of body fat in rats. Ninety male Wistar rats were divided into six groups: control (CTL); control + non-alcoholic beer (CTL+SA); control + beer with alcohol (CTL+CA); cafeteria diet (DIE); cafeteria diet + non-alcoholic beer (DIE+SA); cafeteria diet + beer with alcohol (DIE+CA). The cafeteria diet started at 30 days of life of the animals, and the supply of beer at 60 days. From the 91st day of life, the animals were submitted to behavioral tests and later euthanized. Blood serum was collected and stored for biochemical analysis. Fat stores were removed and weighed to check for the development of obesity. We found no difference between treatments with beers (with or without alcohol) in the analyzed variables. Rats in the cafeteria diet groups showed depressive-like behavior and higher levels of adiposity and body weight compared to their respective control groups. We conclude that the consumption of beers, in the frequency and duration adhered in this work, does not change the behavioral, biochemical and weight gain aspects.