Effects of Hesperidin Supplementation on Anthropometric Indices in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Although some studies have reported that flavonoids can be associated with anti-obesity effects, the putative effects of hesperidin, as a subgroup of flavonoids, on anthropometric parameters are inconclusive. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted to determine the effect of hesperidin supplementation on anthropometric measures in adults.

A comprehensive literature search was performed until February 2022 in electronic databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. The pooled results were obtained by a random-effects model.

A total of nine RCTs enrolling 493 participants were identified. Seven studies had illustrated the effect of hesperidin on weight, eight on body mass index (BMI), five on waist circumference (WC), two on waist to hip ratio (WHR), and two on hip circumference (HC). The results of the pooled analysis showed no significant changes in body weight (0.01 kg, 95% CI: -0.22, 0.24), BMI (-0.02 kg/m2, 95% CI: -0.16, 0.13), and WC (-0.48 cm, 95% CI: -1.52, 0.55) after hesperidin supplementation compared to the control group (P > 0.05). Qualitative assessment of other anthropometric indices also showed no beneficial effect of hesperidin in reducing WHR and HC values; however, these findings are not conclusive because of the limited number of studies.

The present study provides no evidence that hesperidin supplementation is effective in improving anthropometric measures. More high-quality RCTs especially among overweight and obese individuals are needed to strengthen the evidence.