Resumo (EN)
Objective – To assess the effectiveness of a phytotherapic compound developed from a Cereus peruvianus, plants as an adjuvant treatment of obesity in rats fed with a high-fat diet. Phytotherapy is becoming increasingly popular both for the results it yields in several pathologies and because of a growing sense of mistrust toward conventional medical treatments. Methods – Male and female rats were fed with a high-fat diet for one month. The diet was then replaced by a chow diet and a phytotherapic compound (8 mg/kg; KOUBOTM) was orally administered twice a day over 30 d. Body weight gain was assessed weekly and, at the end of treatment, total body weight gain was calculated. A positive control with sibutramine (7.5 mg/kg, twice a day, orally, over 30 d) was also included. Results – A significant reduction in weekly body weight gain, as well as in total weight gain, in both male and female rats after phytotherapic compound administration. The index of body weight loss showed that the phytotherapic compound was more effective in reducing body weight in female than in male rats. The sibutramine treatment showed the same profile as the phytotherapic compound treatment. Conclusion – The present data indicate that KOUBOTM phytotherapic compound was effective in decreasing body weight in both, male and female rats, submitted to a high-fat diet, and showed a similar profile to that of sibutramine.