FORCED SWIMMING STRESS-INDUCED CHANGES IN THE PHYSIOLOGICAL AND BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS IN ALBINO RATS

The effects of fresh water swimming and cold water swimming for one day, 7 days and 15 days were studied on the total body weight, weight of the heart, kidney, adrenals, blood sugar level, serum cholesterol level, total leucocyte count, absolute neutrophil count and absolute eosinophil count in albino rats. The stress session in each day lasted for 45 min. Though the body weight of the animals decreased significantly during the initial period, when the stress period was prolonged, there was recovery in the body weight. There was a significant increase in the weight of the heart, kidney and adrenal glands after both types of stress. A significant leucopenia, eosinopenia and neutropenia along with significant hypoglycemia and hypocholesterolemia was observed in all the subgroups. A maximum stress response was seen upto a period of 7 days and the stress response decreased when the stress period was prolonged to 15 days in the physiological parameters studied. This could be due to the adaptation or habituation for the continued stress. There was no sign of adaptation in the case of biochemical parameters studied. A statistically significant physiological and biochemical changes were observed even after one day of forced swimming stress.