Comparative anti-obesity efficacy of high-interest natural products in preclinical models: a bibliometric and network meta-analysis.

Objective: to identify research hotspots in natural products for obesity and compare their relative efficacy in preclinical models. Methods: bibliometric analysis was performed using CiteSpace and Bibliometrix on publications from the Web of Science Core Collection and PubMed up to January 31, 2026, to identify the five most frequently studied natural products. A systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA) of animal studies evaluating monotherapy with these five natural products were conducted. The primary outcomes were body weight and epididymal white adipose tissue (eWAT), while secondary outcomes included fasting blood glucose (FBG), total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). Random-effects consistency models were used for data synthesis. Treatment rankings were estimated using the Surface Under the Cumulative Ranking (SUCRA) curve. Meta-regression and subgroup analyses were performed to explore heterogeneity. Results: bibliometric analysis identified 4598 publications. The NMA included 137 studies and 2512 animals. Berberine, resveratrol, quercetin, anthocyanins, and curcumin were the most studied. All five natural products significantly reduced body weight versus control. SUCRA rankings suggested outcome-specific ranking patterns within the current evidence network. Berberine showed the highest ranking probability for body weight (92.2%), eWAT (96.3%), and HDL-C (82.1%). Anthocyanins ranked the highest for TC and resveratrol ranked the highest for FBG and LDL-C. Meta-regression identified the route of administration as a significant effect modifier for several outcomes. Subgroup analysis in terms of the administration route confirmed that findings in the subgroup were generally consistent with those from the main analysis. Conclusion: this integrative study maps the research landscape and summarizes comparative preclinical evidence on natural product-derived interventions in obesity models.