A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Cornus mas L. on Anthropometric Indices and Body Composition

Abstract

Obesity and its related metabolic disorders have been a global concern in health care over the past few decades. Lifestyle modification and evidence-based dietary interventions, including the usage of nutraceuticals with minimal adverse effects, have gained widespread recognition as effective strategies for obesity management. Cornelian cherry, scientifically identified as Cornus mas L. (CM) is rich in anthocyanins, flavonoids, tannins, and polyphenols, with anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-diabetic, anti-obesity, and hypolipidemic properties. Cornelian cherry inhibits hepatic lipogenesis, increases hepatic lipid oxidation and clearance, and regulates the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors. Additionally, CM activates the AMP-activated protein kinase and adiponectin signaling pathways in the white adipose tissue, resulting in adipocytokine level decline. We aimed to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the impact of CM on anthropometric indices and body composition. A comprehensive search was conducted on the Web of Sciences, PubMed, and Scopus databases up to April 2025 for published papers. The quality of methodology and risk of bias of selected studies were assessed by the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. Overall, six randomized controlled trials (RCT) were included. Pooled analyses indicated no significant differences observed in cases of body weight (BW), body fat percentage (BF%), fat mass (FM), weight circumference (WC) and hip circumference (HC). However, a modest but significant increase in body mass index (BMI) was observed after supplementing CM. Furthermore, according to sub-group analyses, BW, BMI, BF%, FM, WC, and HC were significantly increased when administration was accomplished on MAPLD patients, the sample size was > 50, the lyophilized dried and CM fruit extract forms were used, intervention duration was < 12 weeks, and doses were ≥ 30 g. Future research should prioritize well-designed, long-term follow-up RCTs investigating CM as an adjunct therapy to multimodal lifestyle interventions, focusing on both anthropometric indices and biochemical markers.