ABSTRACT
Camel milk is known for its antimicrobial properties, and used for treatment of diabetes and liver diseases in folk medicine. So, this study aimed to find out the health benefits of camel milk alone or mixed with Nigella sativa [NS] oil on outcome of viral hepatitis among children. 35 [14 girl and 21 boy] children infected with viral hepatitis with mean age 8.1 +/- 3.6 years were selected from outpatients of Minufiya University and Monshaat Sultan hospitals, Minufiya Governorate, Egypt. The selected children were divided into 4 groups; control group [CG] [n=5] they didn't receive any dietary intervention; milk group [MG] [n=10] they receive 100ml/day of camel milk; oil group [OG] [n=10] they receive 2ml/day of NS oil; and milk oil group [MOG] [n=10] they receive 100 ml of camel milk in addition to 2 ml of NS oil daily. The children were free living and receive their standard medical treatment and normal diet without any modification. The dietary intervention continued for 35 consecutive days. Blood samples were collected from subjects at baseline and after dietary intervention period for determination of ALT, AST, IgG, IgM, alkaline phosphatase, bilirubin, hemoglobin, and HCT. The results showed that feeding camel milk alone decreased IgM by 34.5% and increased IgG by 84.3%, while mixing it with NS oil resulted in decrement of IgM by 47.1% and increment of IgG by 91.7%, and surprisingly NS oil decreased IgM by 64.8% and increased IgG by 72.7%. Whereas, the concentration of elevated liver enzymes decreased significantly by the dietary intervention, especially among group fed camel milk alone or combined with NS oil. In conclusion, feeding camel milk alone or mixed with NS oil had a favorable affect on health status of children with viral hepatitis