Natural Approaches to Appetite Suppression in Obesity: Mechanisms, Evidence, and Clinical Integration

The rapid clinical uptake of incretin-based antiobesity pharmacotherapies has reinforced appetite regulation as a core therapeutic target. However, real-world implementation is often constrained by cost, access, tolerability, and patient preferences, sustaining demand for complementary, lower-cost strategies that may support appetite control and adherence to lifestyle interventions. This review synthesizes mechanistic and clinical evidence on natural strategies intended to suppress appetite as adjuncts to obesity management, integrating homeostatic and hedonic appetite regulation with gut-brain signaling. A structured search of major biomedical databases from inception to June 2025 was conducted, and evidence was synthesized qualitatively by intervention type. Mechanistic and preclinical findings were used to contextualize human data. Across natural strategies, biologic plausibility is common, but the human evidence base remains fragmented and heterogeneous in intervention definition, outcome measurement, and follow-up duration. Reported effects are generally small to modest and short term, with inconsistent links to objective intake measures and durable clinical outcomes. Safety and tolerability profiles vary across approaches, and product or formulation variability, limited long-term data, and inconsistent quality reporting frequently constrain interpretation and generalizability. Overall, natural strategies for appetite suppression may be considered biologically plausible adjuncts, but current evidence supports cautious integration rather than stand-alone use. Future studies should prioritize standardized appetite measurement, objective intake assessments, longer follow-up, and rigorous reporting of safety, tolerability, and product quality to enable clinically actionable guidance.