Benefits of Irvingia Gabonensis

Ocimum Tenuflorum (Holy Basil)

July 22, 2018

Aegle Marmelos Correa

July 28, 2018

Irvingia Gabonensis

Irvingia Gabonensis or better known as The African Mango is now becoming popular because it has been shown to assist people in losing weight. It does so by boosting the body's leptin level. What is leptin you ask? It is a hormone that assists in the suppression of appetite.

This beautiful fruit also contains antioxidant properties as well as assists in lowering cholesterol and blood sugar levels. This fruit is traditionally found in the rain forests of West Africa. The seed it self contains a high fat content and has been used as a fat burning agent.

Weight Loss - Irvingia gabonensis administered 150 mg twice daily before meals to overweight and/or obese human volunteers favorably impacts body weight and a variety of parameters characteristic of the metabolic syndrome. This is the first double blind randomized placebo controlled clinical trial regarding the anti-obesity and lipid profile modulating effects of an Irvingia gabonensis extract. The positive clinical results, together with our previously published mechanisms of gene expression modulation related to key metabolic pathways in lipid metabolism, provide impetus for much larger clinical studies. Irvingia gabonensis extract may prove to be a useful tool in dealing with the emerging global epidemics of obesity, hyperlipidemia, insulin resistance, and their co-morbid conditions.

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A similar study was conducted during a one month trial. The obese patients under Irvingia gabonensis treatment also had a significant decrease of total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, and an increase of HDL-cholesterol. On the other hand, the placebo group did not manifest any changes in blood lipid components. Irvingia gabonensis seed may find application in weight loss.

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Diabetes and Blood Sugar Levels - The soluble fibre of the seed of Irvingia gabonensis like other forms of water-soluble dietary fibres, are "bulk-forming" laxatives. Irvingia gabonensis seeds delay stomach emptying, leading to a more gradual absorption of dietary sugar. This effect can reduce the elevation of blood sugar levels that is typical after a mea. The plasma total cholesterol cencentration was reduced by 39.21%, triglyerides by 44.9% (p < 0,05) and LDL by 45.58%. This was accompanied by a significant increase in HDL-cholesterol of 46.852%. The CT/HDL ratio (p < 0.05) and the blood glucose level were also reduced (32.36%; p < 0.05). No significant change was observed in the placebo group.

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Antioxidant Properties -The studied underutilised tropical fruits had fairly high antioxidant (free radical scavenging) activity. Generally, the fruit extracts showed positive inferences to the major phytochemicals tested except for the presence of alkaloids. These include the presence of coumarins in breadfruit and soursop, cardiac glycosides in soursop, sweetsop and African mango seeds as well as triterpenoids in African mango pulp and sweetsop. Thus, there are potential health benefits to be derived from the incorporation of these fruits into diets and this indicates the need for their exploitation in seeking optimum health of the populace.

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The ethanolic extracts of Irvingia gabonensis exhibited protective effects against Cd-induced nephrotoxicity. For populations exposed to Cd, the use of the ethanolic extract of Irvingia gabonensis could thus be recommended.

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Improvement of Liver Functions - IG extract also reduced the oxidative stress induced by SA as measured by the reduced generation of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and significant (p<0.05) difference in the CAT and SOD activities between the groups treated with both SA and extract, and the positive control group administered SA alone. This study therefore shows that the ethanol leaf extract of Irvingia gabonensis have hepatoprotective and anticlastogenic effects against sodium arsenite-induced toxicity possibly by enhancing the antioxidant status in the Wistar rats.

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Antibiotic and Anti-Parasitic - he ethyl acetate soluble fractions of leaf and root were found to show the highest activity. At a concentration of 5 mg/ml, the root ethyl acetate fraction inhibited the growth of all the bacteria tested. The phytochemical screening of the plant materials revealed the presence oftannins, saponins, alkaloids and anthraquinones and the absence of cardiac glycosides. Thin layer chromatography indicated the presence of phenolic compounds.

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Leaf extracts of F. exasperata, V. amygdalina, and I. gabonensis exhibited varying degrees of larvicidal activities on the infective stage larvae of H. bakeri in vitro whereas F. exasperata showed no activity on the parasites in vivo.

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Pain Relief - The data presented in this study suggest that the active principle(s) in the water extract has analgesic profile similar to that of the narcotic analgesic and the ethanol extract might contain compound(s) that behave like non-narcotic analgesic agent. These findings provide for the first time the pharmacological basis for the folkloric use of Irvingia gabonensis in the relief of pain.

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