Traditional application of Èfó Wòròwó (Solanecio biafrae) to reduce weight and fats in pre-obesity

Èfó Wòròwó (Solanecio biafrae) an important vegetable in Nigeria has many health benefits non-scientific claims in herbal practice. This work was designed to evaluate the traditional application of Èfó Wòròwó (Solanecio biafrae) to reduce weight and fats in pre-obesity. 31 pre-obese individuals (35-70 years; females – 20; Males - 11) with BMI of 27 ± 4.0 kg/m2 who were not on any fat or weight reduction medication and 45 age-matched non-obese volunteers with BMI of 19 ± 2.0 kg/m2 were investigated as control test and control subjects respectively. Plasma cholesterol and triglycerides were measured by spectrophotometry method while BMI was determined by standard method. There was a significantly lower BMI, plasma Total cholesterol and triglycerides in pre-obese subjects after treatment than before treatment (p<0.05). There was a significantly higher total cholesterol, BMI and plasma total triglycerides in pre-obese subjects before treatment than the results obtained in the control subjects (p<0.05). However, there was no significant difference in plasma  total cholesterol, BMI and plasma total triglycerides in pre-obese subjects after  treatment compared with the results obtained in the control subjects (p>0.05). This work confirms the traditional health benefit claim of Èfó Wòròwó (Solaneciobiafrae) at reducing plasma total cholesterol, BMI and plasma total triglycerides in pre-obese subjects.