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Key Points
- 64% moved out of the metabolic syndrome range
- Fasting glucose significantly decreased
- Triglycerides declined substantially
- Blood pressure improved
- Inflammatory marker TNF-Ξ± decreased significantly
Methods
Forty-nine adults (18β70 years) meeting the criteria for metabolic syndrome were randomized into two groups.
- Hesperidin Group: 1,000 mg/day (500 mg twice daily) hesperidin + lifestyle counseling for 12 weeks
- Placebo Group: Identical placebo + lifestyle counseling for 12 weeks
Both groups received dietary guidance and were encouraged to perform at least 30 minutes of moderate activity five times per week.
Researchers aimed to measure the metabolic syndrome remission rate, alongside fat cell profile, fasting glucose, insulin resistance, inflammatory markers, and blood pressure.
More Participants Moved Out of Metabolic Syndrome
After 12 weeks, 64% of participants taking hesperidin improved enough that they no longer met the clinical criteria for metabolic syndrome, compared to 33% in the placebo group.
"Hesperidin led to significant decrease in serum levels of glucose, insulin, triglyceride, total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, TNF-Ξ± and hs-CRP."
"3 of 5 components, including abdominal obesity, elevated blood pressure and elevated fasting glucose, significantly reduced in hesperidin group."
Both groups improved with lifestyle intervention, but adding hesperidin nearly doubled the percent of participants who reduced their risk profile.
"The results indicate that hesperidin supplementation can improve metabolic abnormalities and inflammatory status in patients with MetS."
Stronger Glycemic Improvements
The hesperidin group experienced amplified glucose-regulating effects from diet and exercise.
"Hesperidin significantly decreased fasting glucose level and increased insulin sensitivity."
Fasting glucose, insulin, and HOMA-IR all declined significantly, signaling improved metabolic control at the level of insulin resistance, a core driver of metabolic syndrome.
These results indicate meaningful improvements in underlying metabolic function rather than isolated biomarker changes.
Extensive metabolic research shows how plant-derived compounds can influence signaling pathways central to cardiometabolic risk.
Targeted Triglyceride Reduction
Participants taking hesperidin experienced a significantly greater reduction in triglycerides, indicating an effect beyond lifestyle modification alone.
"Oral administration of hesperidin significantly decreased serum levels of triglyceride compared to placebo."
This suggests a targeted influence on triglyceride metabolism β a key component of metabolic syndrome.
In contrast, total cholesterol and LDL-C declined within both groups, likely driven by lifestyle changes in diet and exercise.
"Serum cholesterol decreased in both groups significantly⦠This finding confirms the significant effects of life-style modification on serum cholesterol."
Overall, these data points to a more specific triglyceride-lowering signal with hesperidin, while broader cholesterol improvements can be attributed to exercise and dietary modification.
Reduced Inflammatory Signaling
Metabolic syndrome is marked by chronic low-grade inflammation that contributes to insulin resistance and vascular dysfunction.
Hesperidin supplementation significantly reduced TNF-Ξ±, a key pro-inflammatory cytokine closely linked to cardiometabolic risk.
"Hesperidin had a remarkable effect on inflammation reduction. Serum concentrations of hs-CRP and TNF-Ξ± decreased significantly during 12 weeks in patients receiving hesperidin."
These improvements support a measurable anti-inflammatory role for hesperidin and reinforce the interconnected nature of inflammation and metabolic dysfunction.
"Decrease in circulating concentrations of inflammatory cytokine was in parallel with a blood pressure reduction."
Understanding how persistent low-grade inflammation drives metabolic dysfunction provides broader context for why reducing related markers may translate into long-term cardiometabolic resilience.
Conclusion
Hesperidin supplementation meaningfully improved multiple hallmarks of metabolic syndrome when combined with structured diet and exercise.
Participants taking hesperidin were nearly twice as likely to move out of the metabolic syndrome range compared to placebo.
"We demonstrated that hesperidin could improve inflammation, glycemic parameters, hypertension and hypertriglyceridemia in patients with metabolic syndrome."
"Also, reduction of waist circumference and diastolic blood pressure during 12 weeks of supplementation with hesperidin was more than the control group, but these differences were only near the level of statistical significance."
The observed improvements suggest that hesperidin's effects extend beyond isolated biomarkers and may influence underlying metabolic pathways tied to cardiometabolic risk.
"Hesperidin can be recommended as an adjuvant to lifestyle modification for the prevention and treatment of metabolic syndrome."
