Effects of curcumin in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: Curcumin is an anti-inflammatory that is proposed to have a positive impact on patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We aim to assess the effects of curcumin in patients with NAFLD. Methods: Clinical trials from PubMed, Scopus, the Web of Science, and Cochrane CENTRAL with variables alanine transferase, aspartate transaminase, alkaline phosphatase, glycated hemoglobin (HBA1c), BMI, waist circumference, total cholesterol, total glycerides, high-density lipoproteins, and low-density lipoproteins were included. Homogeneous and heterogeneous were analyzed under a fixed-effects model and the random-effects model, respectively. Results: Fourteen clinical trials found that curcumin has no statistically significant effect on alanine transferase (MD = −2.20 [−6.03, 1.63], p = 0.26], aspartate transaminase (MD = 1.37 [−4.56, 1.81], p = 0.4), alkaline phosphatase (MD = 3.06 [−15.85, 9.73], p = 0.64), glycated hemoglobin (HBA1c), (MD = −0.06 [−0.13, 0.02], p = 0.16], and BMI (MD = 0.04 [−0.38, 0.46], p = 0.86). Curcumin reduced the waist circumference (MD = −4.87 [−8.50, −1.25], p = 0.008). Lipid profile parameters were not significant, except the total glycerides (MD = −13.22 [−24.19, −2.24], p = 0.02). Conclusions: Curcumin significantly reduces total glycerides and waist circumference in NAFLD.