A systematic review on obesity and herbal anti-obesity medicines

Obesity is major health problem worldwide. It is widely accepted that increase in obesity results from an imbalance between energy intake and expenditure. Obesity can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, ischemic heart disease, stroke, and cancer Obesity is associated with increased death rates from a wide variety of human cancers, including colon and rectum, esophagus, kidney, pancreas, gallbladder, ovary, cervix, liver, prostate, and certain hematopoietic cancers. It is necessary to treat obese individuals by both lifestyle interventions and/or pharmacological or surgical therapy. Unfortunately, the drug therapy gives short-term benefits, is can cause rebound weight gain after the cessation of drug use, side effects and adverse effects from the drug, and drug abuse. Pharmacological treatment includes diethylpropion, sibutramine, orlistat, phentermine, and fluoxetineor bupropion. This review aimed to investigate the herbal medicines available in the management of obesity.