Protective effects of propolis on hepatic steatosis and fibrosis among patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) evaluated by real‐time two‐dimensional shear wave elastography: A randomized clinical trial

Abstract

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease, while no drugs have been approved for its treatment. The pieces of evidence indicate that propolis as a novel anti-inflammatory agent might be a promising candidate to treat NAFLD. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of propolis on hepatic steatosis and fibrosis in patients with NAFLD. This randomized clinical trial was conducted on 54 patients with NAFLD. Patients were randomly assigned to receive propolis tablets at a dose of 250 mg twice daily for 4 months or placebo. The improvement in hepatic steatosis and fibrosis was evaluated using two-dimensional shear wave elastography. Improvement in the hepatic steatosis was significantly higher in the propolis group than the placebo group, even after adjustment for baseline value and changes in weight, energy intake, and physical activity (odds ratio [OR]: 5.67; 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 1.41-22.8; p = .014). A significant reduction was observed on the liver stiffness in the propolis group (−0.65 ± 0.56 kPa; p = .001), whereas it increased in the placebo group (0.27 ± 0.59 kPa; p = .037). Also, the intake of propolis significantly decreased high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels compared with the placebo group (−0.371; 95%CI: −0.582 to −0.16 mg/L; p = .01). Changes in serum levels of fasting blood sugar, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase,

Effects of Propolis Supplementation on The Severity of Disease In Irritable Bowel Syndrome Subjects: A Randomized, Double-Blind Clinical Trial

“…Our results also showed that propolis had no signi cant effect on weight, BMI, and WC after adjusting the potential confounders such as changes in energy intakes and physical activity levels. In line with our results, the study of Soleimani et al showed no signi cant effect of propolis administration on weight, BMI, body fat mass, and fat free mass in patients with NAFLD (16). Likewise, Mujica et al reported that daily consumption of 30 drops of 3% propolis extract for 3 months did not affect weight, BMI, and WC (29).…”

“…Our results showed that propolis had no signi cant effect on energy intakes and energy-adjusted dietary intakes. In line with our results, Soleimani et al reported that the administration of 900 mg/day of propolis for 4 months in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) had no signi cant effect on energy and dietary intakes (16). In the study of Samadi et al, the administration of 900 mg/day propolis for 3 months did not affect the dietary intakes in the propolis group in type 2 diabetic patients (26).…”

“…The supplements were prepared by Mashhad School of Pharmacy, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Iran; under the supervision of a clinical pharmacist. Propolis tablets consist of 450 mg of propolis extract (containing 90 mg of the polyphenols and 67 mg avonoids), whereas the placebo tablets contain microcrystalline cellulose (a powder that had no taste, calories, smell, or nutrients) and various edible colors (16). The tablets were similar in color, shape, and packaging; and were administrated before lunch and dinner for six weeks.…”

Bee products consumption and cardiovascular diseases risk factors: a systematic review of interventional studies

“…Eligible studies were conducted between 2007 and 2020, and the mean age of the participants was between 22 and 63. Of 23 included articles, 6 recruited healthy subjects , [13][14][15][16][17][18] while 11 were conducted among diabetic or pre-diabetic patients , [8,[19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28] and others included patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) , [29] dry eye disease , [30] hypercholesterolemic patients , [31] nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) , [32] and overweight subjects . [33,34] Studies were mostly conducted in Iran (n = 14) [8,16,17,19,20,22-28,,3233] or Japan (n = 4) , [13,14,21,30] and the others were carried out in Brazil , [29] Chile , [15] Turkey , [18] Slovenia , [34] and Taiwan .…”

“…The effects of propolis supplementation on glycemic indices or lipid profile were examined in 7 clinical trials . [8,15,19,21,27,29,32] In 2019, Afsharpour et al conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study and reported a significant reduction in the FBG and 2-h PG in T2DM patients treated with propolis (500 mg, 3 x daily for 8 weeks) compared with the placebo group (P < .05) . [19] Furthermore, Mujica et al in 2017, evaluated the efficacy of propolis supplementation on the modulation of lipids in a human population in Talca, Chile, and showed a significant improvement (P < .05) in HDL in those receiving propolis for 90 days .…”