Effect of purslane on blood lipids and glucose: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Despite a history of purslane usage as a herbal treatment for dyslipidemia and hyperglycemia management, existing evidence from clinical trials is controversial. The aim for the current study was to evaluate the efficacy of purslane supplementation on lipid parameters and glycemic status in adult populations. A systematic review was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, ISI Web of Science, and Google Scholar up to January 15, 2018, searching for randomized controlled trials that assessed the impact of purslane on fasting blood glucose (FBG), triglycerides, total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). Based on the detected heterogeneity between studies, a random- or fixed-effect model was applied in the meta-analysis. The findings from six randomized controlled trials, comprising 352 participants, indicated that purslane can reduce FBG (-4.54 mg/dl, 95% CI [-7.54, -1.53]; I²  = 0.53%) and triglycerides (-19.16 mg/dl, 95% CI [-38.17, -0.15]; I²  = 0%) levels. Changes in TC, LDL-C, and HDL-C concentrations did not reach a statistically significant level. Subgroup analysis showed a favorable effects of purslane on FBG, triglycerides, TC, and LDL-C in a subset of studies in which purslane was administered >1.5 g/day. Categorization based on gender showed that purslane was more effective in improving FBG, TC and LDL-C in females compared with males. This systematic review and meta-analysis suggested that the purslane might be effective on the improvement of blood lipid and glucose levels. Further robust studies with sufficient durations and dosages of supplementation are needed to confirm these results.