Stearin from Cod Liver Oil as a Source of Vitamin D

Abstract At present cod liver oil is the most common source of vitamin D for chicks which do not have access to direct sunshine. Since the vitamin D potency of different cod liver oils varies, safety demands the use of biologically tested oils, which are rather expensive. It seemed desirable to determine the value of cod liver oil stearin as a preventive of rickets in growing chicks, since it offered possibilities for an economical source of vitamin D. Stearin1 is the term which is used to designate the mixture of fats which is removed from crude cod liver oil during its preparation for human consumption. The crude oil is chilled to about 20° F2, at which temperature these fats solidify and are removed by filtering. Crude cod liver oil, on the average, contains about 20 per cent of stearin3; but this amount varies to some extent, depending upon the condition of . . .