Hoodia Gordonii Plant
Hoodia gordonii is a genus of succulent Aloe plants, not cacti, in the family Apocynaceae that grows in the Kalahari dessert of South Africa. It is widely used traditionally by the San people of Southern Africa. The indigenous people in that area use the plant during long hunting trips to fend of hunger and thirst. In other parts of the world Hoodia Extract is used for weight loss. The plant is dried and made into a powder which can then be sold in capsule form as a diet pill designed to naturally suppress a person’s appetite.
It takes about five years before the plant can be harvested and there are over 13 types of hoodia. Only one species of Hoodia – Hoodia gordonii, is known to contain the active ingredient responsible for suppressing appetite. The ingredient identified is steroidal glycoside and has been called p57.
Hoodia extract in the form of diet capsules were introduced in 2004 and have been a popular amongst dieter’s ever since. They have been featured on 60 minutes, Oprah and The Today Show. It has become a lot more popular as people have become aware of its usage as an appetite suppressant.
However is Hoodia really effective for loosing weight and how wary should you be about purchasing Hoodia online?
How Does Hoodia Gordonii Suppress Cravings for Food?
Scientific research has shown that the South African Hoodia plant has the ability to suppress appetite due to an extract in the plant called P57. Anecdotal reports of the use of P57 in humans show that it significantly reduces appetite, calorie intake and body weight.
After a meal your glucose level rises and this causes signals to be sent to the brain making you feel full. The Hoodia P57 molecule has a similar effect but has been reported to be thousands of times more powerful than glucose at sending these signals to the brain. The dieter will feel full even though they may have eaten little or no food at all.
Is Hoodia Gordonii Effective for Weight Loss?
Kalahari bushmen
Historic Evidence - For many centuries the Bushmen of South Africa have been eating Hoodia Gordonii to fight of hunger during their week long hunting trips. For the Bushemn there is no question that it works as an appetite suppressant.
Journalistic Evidence – Established Journalists are usually sceptical about any new weight loss supplement. They have seen many new dietary supplements for weight loss come and go. However a number of journalists attest to the power of Hoodia at suppressing appetite. “I’d have to say it did work” says Leslie Stahl reporting on CBS News 60 minutes (aired in November 2004) after spending time in the Kalahari desert. She claimed that she had no after effects, no queasy stomach and no racing heart and that she did not feel hungry all day, even though she would normally have a pang of hunger around mealtime.
Tom Mangold, a correspondent from BBC news reporting on May 30th 2003 that after eating a banana size piece of Hoodia Gordonii he and his cameraman felt full for the whole day and did not have the desire to eat for many hours afterwards. According to Tom Mangold “Dinner time came and went. We reached our hotel at about midnight and went to bed without food… the next day, neither of us wanted nor ate breakfast… Partial then full appetite returned slowly after 24 hours.”
While there has not been many studies carried out to determine the efficacy of p57 in reducing calories the trials conducted so far look promising.
Rat Trials – Scientists at Brown University Medical School in Providence, Rhode Island carried out a study into the effectiveness of P57 in Hoodia Gordonii.
The Brown researches conducted a number of experiments with normal, healthy rats by injecting them with small amounts of P57 from pure Hoodia Gordonii. The P57 up-regulates the energy compound hypothalamic ATP (adenosine triphosphate). Those high concentrations of ATP signal the brain to stop eating.
The result of the trials showed that food intake was reduced by 50-60% during the first 24 hours after the injections and the effect, which was dose-dependent, lasted for about 24 to 48 hours. Included in these studies were experiments with obese diabetic rates. Hoodia Gordonii was claimed to have produced a reversal of diabetes.
Human Trials – Phytopharm, the company who hold the rights and patents to p57 have performed a trial on 60 overweight individuals and compared the effects of p57 against a placebo. After 15 days, the P57 group had achieved a 30% reduction in caloric intake and a reduction in body fat by 1 kg (2.2 lb)
Future Clinical Research – According to Phytopharms website
Phytopharm and Unilever are currently evaluating the data arising from one of these studies and the final report is expected to be available from the clinical research organisation in Q3 2010. The Company intends to publish a number of scientific articles on the Hoodia programme in 2010.
Benefits of Taking Hoodia Gordonii
The reported Benefits of Hoodia Gordonii include the following:
• Less food intake will mean fewer calories and fats to burn
• Similar to light fasting but no hunger pains.
• An easier way of reducing calorie intake
• Wards of food cravings naturally
• Don’t have to restrain yourself from eating foods.
• No need to follow a strict diet and calculate calorie intake
• Few side effects because it is not a drug but is a 100% natural and safe
• Does not contain ephedrine, caffeine and stimulants.
• Dieters will not experience a queasy stomach or racing heart beat
• Has been known to relieve or cure abdominal cramps, indigestion, hemorrhoids, tuberculosis, hypertension and diabetes.
Dieters should remember that they should still continue eating meals. The supplement is made to help individuals maintain a normal and healthy eating habit.
While Hoodia is natural you should check to ensure that Hoodia will not interfere with prescribed medication.
Buying Hoodia
Studies in animals and clinical studies on humans do show it can reduce appetite and result in weight loss. However experts say you should be careful where you buy Hoodia. There are a number of different species of Hoodia plant that have little if any appetite suppressant benefit. Ensure you buy Hoodia Gordonii as this species of Hoodia contains the important P57 appetite suppressant ingredient. Two popular brands are Hoodia Slim and MHSCI Hoodia
Unfortunately dietary supplements are unregulated by the FDA so a lot of the quality control measures that would be in place for prescription drugs or even over the counter drugs don’t apply to dietary supplements.
Also there are widespread reports of counterfeit hoodia products. Mike Adams of News Target, estimates that 80% of hoodia products are contaminated or counterfeit. It’s impossible to know if a hoodia product contains pure hoodia and the active ingredient, unless it has been tested by an independent laboratory.
Avoid products that list ingredients other than hoodia – The best Hoodia capsules are those with 100% pure natural Hoodia extract. Due to its popularity there are several fake and cheap imitations over the Internet. The real extract is rare and expensive so manufactures will pass that onto customers.
CITES certificate
To ensure your getting real Hoodia follow these guidelines:
• Remember that the plant extract is rare and expensive. Therefore beware of companies offering Hoodia Capsules at very low prices.
• Make sure it carries a certificate showing a South African country as the origin. South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, and Angola are the primary locations where Hoodia is known to grow.
• Make sure that the manufacturer has a CITES certificate to show that it is Hoodia Gordonii and not one of the other many species of Hoodia. CITES stands for Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora.
• Avoid products that list ingredients other than Hoodia.
• Avoid hoodia products such as hoodia patches, gums, tea and even hoodia lollipops. They are simply gimmicks that are not worth buying.
• Don’t try any free hoodia trials. Experts say you won’t get what you are paying for.
Should You Buy the Hoodia Patch?
I do not recommend you try the Hoodia diet patch. While companies that sell Hoodia patches may claim that they are more effective than hoodia pills or capsules because they bypass the stomach there are no clinical studies that demonstrate this or even demonstrate that they work. If anyone knows of any please contact me.
Unlike the nicotine patches that underwent rigorous scientific trials the hoodia patches on the market today have not.
A hoodia patch is not a natural way of getting hoodia into your body. The Sans Bushmen for many centuries ate it raw to derive its natural appetite suppressing benefits. A capsule that contains ground up hoodia gordonii comes closer to that tried and tested method than a patch on the skin.
Phytopharm, the pharmaceutical company that owns the patent rights to the active ingredient in Hoodia Gordonii, called P57 have conducted clinical trials on the actual extract and not on any hoodia patch or hoodia spray. Also Phytopharm has not yet explored ways to develop other products based upon Hoodia gordonii. According to Phytopharm’s website
“We are evaluating a number of potential opportunities including discussions with major branded companies to explore ways forward for the Hoodia programme ….. It is currently too early in the dialogue to give any indication as to whether these discussions will lead to a further commercial opportunity to develop products based upon Hoodia gordonii.”
Should You Enroll in a Hoodia Free Trial?
Based on the research I have carried out I would not recommend you join a Hoodia free trial due to all the scams out there. However if you do go ahead and join a hoodia free trial there are a few things you should be aware of.
The first month may be free but after that you usually have to pay and it can be expensive.
Some of these companies make it difficult to opt out. They may use unscrupulous tactics like ignoring your request and they may keep billing you.
Pure Hoodia Gordonii?
They may claim their hoodia product is “pure hoodia”. While this may be true, it may not be pure hoodia gordonii. Only the hoodia gordonii species contains the naturally occurring appetite suppressing ingredient Hoodia P57 can help you loose weight.
The pure hoodia gordonii is expensive due to its rarity and because it takes so many years to grow. It is also protected by International trade laws and getting the required license to buy it is difficult. That is why so many companies do not use the genuine Hoodia Gordonii from South Africa. Again make sure that they have certified documents. These are the C.I.T.E.S Certificate and the Analytical Report.
In short do your research into the company and how they manufacture their products. Make sure they have the genuine Hoodia gordonii and the required certificates and documents. Ensure that they can be contacted by telephone and that you can easily opt out of the trial in the future.
Hoodia Side Effects
An important question many ask is “is Hoodia is Safe”?
In clinical studies of the Hoodia P57 no serious adverse effects have been reported. Many sellers of Hoodia will take this to mean that Hoodia has no side effect at all. However this is not strictly true. While I have found no evidence that hoodia is dangerous, some herbs when mixed with certain medications can bring about negative side effects. If you are taking any other medication you should consult with your doctor about any potential side effects of taking hoodia in combination with prescribed medication.
Of course the most significant side effect is the reduction in appetite. While this is a welcome side effect to dieters it is not always good news to diabetics who depend on their hunger signals as a natural warning signal. If your hunger signals are turned off then the normal warning signals could come too late. If you are a diabetic, you should consult with your doctor before taking any weight loss supplement.
Try and purchase 100% natural Hoodia Gardonii extract. Sometimes fillers or other herbs are mixed with the Hoodia extract. If any negative reaction is experienced at least you will be able to narrow down the cause and reduce the chances of other ingredients being responsible.
