The effects of hydroalcoholic extract of spinach on prevention and treatment of some metabolic and histologic features in a rat model of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

BACKGROUND This study evaluated the effects of hydroalcoholic extract of spinach (HES) on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). In the prevention phase, 18 Sprague–Dawley rats were fed a high‐fat diet, a high‐fat diet plus 400 mg kg−1 HES, or a chow diet for 7 weeks. For the treatment phase, after the induction of NAFLD, they were fed a high‐fat diet, a high‐fat diet plus 400 mg kg−1 HES, a chow diet, or chow diet plus 400 mg kg−1 HES for 4 weeks (n = 6). RESULTS Weight gain (P = 0.01), food intake (P < 0.01), serum glucose (P = 0.01), triglyceride (TG) (P = 0.02), low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL‐c) (P = 0.01), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (P = 0.02), liver steatosis, and the nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) activity score (NAS) (P < 0.01) in the high‐fat group were statistically higher than in the other groups at the end of the prevention phase. Feeding spinach extract to rats on a high‐fat diet decreased serum glucose (P = 0.01), total cholesterol (TCh) (P < 0.01), AST (P = 0.01), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) (P < 0.01), and liver steatosis (P < 0.01) in the treatment phase. CONCLUSION Overall, spinach extract showed beneficial effects in the prevention and treatment of NAFLD.