Traditional herbal medicines used in obesity management: A systematic review of ethnomedicinal surveys

Objective: This review provides a compiled list of traditionally used medicinal plants used worldwide in the management of obesity. Methods: An exhaustive bibliographic research was carried out by means of scientific engines and databases including Science direct, Medline/PubMed, and Google Scholar. Results: 108 field studies were obtained which dated from 1988 to 2020. A total of 451 plants species belonging to 329 genera and 110 families were recorded in 35 countries. Compositae (34 Genera and 43 Species) and Leguminosae (26 Genera and 43 Species) were the main families used. The most reported species were Carica papaya L., Zingiber officinale Roscoe (n = 6), Hibiscus sabdariffa L., Foeniculum vulgare Mill, Zea mays L. (n = 5), Bauhinia variegata L., Caralluma tuberculata N.E.Br., Citrus medica L., Prunus avium (L.) L., Rosmarinus officinalis L. and Senna alexandrina Mill. (n = 4). Data obtained from laboratory studies provide evidence of the antiobesity properties of these species. Analysis of the parts used revealed that leaves (24%) and fruits (18%) were mostly used and decoction (42%) was the most preferred method of preparation. Conclusion: This review is the first of its kind to provide a global report on traditional herbal medicines used to manage obesity. These findings could serve as a scientific baseline to advocate further laboratory and clinical investigations on the antiobesity potential of these herbal remedies.