Hoodia Weight Loss Pills
By Dr. Edward F. Group III, DC, ND, DACBN
updated on 11/19/2007 at 03:05PM
The History of Hoodia Gordonii
Pronounced HOO-dee-ah, this plant is also known as hoodia, xhooba, khoba, Ghaap, and hoodia cactus. It can be found in the semi-arid regions of South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, and Angola. Hoodia is actually not a cactus at all. The plant grows in clumps of green upright stems, flowering with pale purple flowers after about five years of growth. There are roughly twenty types of hoodia plant worldwide; however, only the hoodia gordonii variety is believed to act as a natural appetite suppressant.
Although hoodia has been in the news quite a bit recently, local African people have known of its powers for years. The San Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert have been eating hoodia for a very long time to stave off hunger and thirst during times of drought and migration. Hoodia has also been used to heal abdominal cramps, hemorrhoids, high blood pressure, tuberculosis, indigestion, and diabetes.
As early as 1937, a Dutch anthropologist who was studying the San Bushmen noted that they used hoodia to suppress appetite. In 1963, scientists at South Africa’s Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), began studying the plant.
Working with a British pharmaceutical company called Phytopharm, South African scientists were able to identify the active ingredient in hoodia, a steroidal glycoside, which they named p57. They then obtained a patent for p57 and spent more than $20 million on hoodia research.
Hoodia Gordonii and Weight Loss
So is all the hype about hoodia and weight loss true? Unfortunately, there is not that much research published to date on hoodia and its effects on the body. In animal studies, hoodia is believed to reduce caloric intake by 30 to 50 percent. Clinical research at Brown University in Rhode Island recently found that the steroidal glycosides in hoodia might trigger weight loss by affecting the nerve cells in the hypothalamus that monitor blood glucose.
When you eat, the food causes your blood sugar to increase. This causes the nerve cells in the hypothalamus to fire, signaling your brain that you are full. Nevertheless, the active ingredient in hoodia may actually be able to enter the mid-brain and make your nerve cells fire as if you were full, even before you have eaten.
Hoodia Weight Loss Pills
There are numerous sites on the Internet that offer information and comparisons about various hoodia weight loss pills. Nevertheless, it’s important to use caution when choosing a weight loss product. Hoodia is difficult to grow, taking years to fully mature until it can be harvested. This keeps the supply limited and the costs high. Therefore, many of the “hoodia” weight loss pills on the market don’t actually contain this expensive ingredient.
The Side Effects of Hoodia Weight Loss Pills
As mentioned earlier, the research on hoodia weight loss pills is scarce. There are no published long-term studies on the safety of hoodia. In addition, even though the San Bushmen have used it for thousands of years, this doesn’t mean that it’s safe. It may take at least another decade before hoodia has undergone enough testing for us to understand its side effects, drug interactions, and safety concerns.
In particular, people with diabetes should be particularly cautious when considering hoodia pills for weight loss because it’s possible for your blood sugar to drop to dangerously low levels when using this supplement.
Hoodia weight loss pills may be able to help you lose weight but the jury is still out on their effectiveness and overall safety. Unfortunately, there simply is not enough research on these pills to justify their usage. If you are interested in losing weight quickly and safely, you are better off trying Slimirex™. This supplement is a well-researched weight loss supplement has nine powerful ingredients that work together to gently and safely give you the weight loss support you need.
About the Author
Dr. Edward F. Group III continues to develop, sell and evaluate exclusively high-end natural and organic healthcare products to support a wide range of health conditions. The products we promote are free of toxic tag-along herbicides, insecticides, pesticides, heavy metals, fumigants, irradiation, liver-toxic glues, binders, or gelatin capsules with animal-source risk and toxic preservatives.
