ABSTRACT

Obesity is a long-term, complex medical condition marked by excessive body fat, which can adversely affect health and quality life. It is rapidly increasing worldwide, posing significant concerns in both developed and developing nations. Regular exercise, weight loss surgery, moderate intake of balanced diet helps in the management of obesity. This study evaluated the hematological protective effects of Irvingia gabonensis root aqueous extract on lipidemic-induced obesity in Wistar rats. The plants were collected, authenticated, and processed into aqueous extracts. Twenty-five Wistar rats of both sexes were used for the study, with obesity induced using cholesterol. Following treatment with graded doses of the extract (25, 50 and 100 mg/kg), hematological parameters were measured using hematology automated analyzer. At 25 mg/kg of the extract had no significant difference with white blood cells, monocytes, absolute count of lymphocytes levels compared to the control groups, also, at 50 mg/kg showed no difference of the red blood cells, hemoglobin and hematocrit (hct) and at 50 mg/kg had a slightly significant reduction in the platelet and mean platelet volume (mpv) (p <0.5). These findings showed the promising effect of the root aqueous extract as hemato-modulatory properties. This validated the previous folklore findings and gives room for further research.