The Combination of Exercise and Green Tea on Body Composition and Blood Pressure in Overweight and Obese Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Study

Exercise along with taking herbal supplement is recommended as an important way to control and prevent obesity and blood pressure. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the combination of exercise and drinking green tea on body composition and blood pressure in overweight and obese adults.

In this meta-analysis study, articles in English and persian languages were searched without time limit until June 2024, in PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Google scholar, Sid and Magiran databases -using keywords exercise training, physical activity, green tea extract, body composition, blood pressure, adults and obesity. Mean difference and 95% confidence interval were calculated using random effect model. Heterogeneity was evaluated using the I2 test, and diffusion bias was evaluated by visual analysis of funnel plot and Egger's test.‎

A total of 13 randomized clinical trial studies and 283 adult subjects were analyzed. The results showed that the combination of exercise and drinking green tea caused a significant decrease in body mass index (P=0.001), systolic blood pressure (P=0.024), and diastolic blood pressure (P=0.039). However, there was no significant change in waist-to-hip ratio (P=0.298) and body fat percentage (P=0.806) in overweight and obese adults compared to the control group.

The results showed that the combination of exercise and drinking green tea improves body composition and lowers blood pressure in overweight and obese adults. Therefore, these two interventions can be suggested as a practical and non-pharmacological solution to reduce cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.