Studies on Nutritional Aspects of Spirulina based Dietary Food Supplement for Intensive care Patients Pharmacological and Safety Assessment

Abstract

The present study has evaluated the add on effects of Spirulina in a pre newlineexisting nutritional supplement which is in practice for the intensive care patients. newlineThe intensive care patients are on a special care and needs the proper nutrition for newlinetheir speedy recovery and nourishment. Most of the patients unable to take the diet newlinethrough oral route so are being given the supplements with Ryle s tube (RT) feeding. newlineThe present Spirulina rich nutritional supplement has became a complete dietary newlinesolution for these patients as its rich in all the essential proteins, carbohydrates, newlinevitamins, minerals and other essential nutritional ingredients. The present newlineinvestigation has explored the nutritional composition, microbial profiling, newlineformulation development and in vivo safety of this novel formulation for their further newlineexploration as a commercially viable product. The formulated combination has shown newlinethe microbial counts in allowed limits. The nutritional profile falls as per the norms of newlineICMR s dietary guidelines. Also the acute toxicity study in experimental rats has newlineshown maximum tolerability and safety of the formulation dose and does not revealed newlineany adverse events during the experiments. Hence further we propose in future newlinestudies a clinical trial of this supplement before its commercialization as a nutritional newlinesupplement for RT feeding to intensive care patients. newlineDietary supplement has now received urgent attention in the management of newlinecritical patients [Alberda C. et al, 2009]. It has become important with the newlineunderstanding of the clinical pathology of protein malnutrition in intensive care newlinepatients and difficulties arriving in the administration of nutrition supplement newline[Lafrance J.P. et al, 2005; Artinian V. et al, 2005]. Its has gained importance from newlinebeing an supplement in critical patients to that of complete therapy. Vincent has newlinesignified the importance of supplementing the intensive care patient with proteins for newlinefeeding in Analgesic condition, Sedation, Ulcer prophylaxis, and Glucose control newline[Vincent J.L., 2005