Hoodia

The Hoodia plant has been in the diet of South Africa's Bushmen for thousands of years. Hoodia plants are succulents and not Cacti, although since they have a spiny appearance similar to cacti they are often mistaken for a Cacti. The genus encompasses 13 species of which Hoodia gordonii is one. Only the Gordonii variation of the Hoodia plant has appetite suppressant abilities.

Background

The first media news on the effectiveness of the Hoodia gordonii plant was reported by the BBC. This was the sparkle that flooded the market with hoodia supplements. Prior to this news report we only know of three Hoodia based products available on the market.

In this report the BBC Two’s correspondent, Tom Mangold traveled to the Kalahari Desert to test the hoodia plant. This leafless spiny succulent plant grows in the wild only in South Africa; and works as an appetite suppressant.

The medicinal use of the hoodia gordonii plant goes back thousands of years. The San communities used this plant to stave off hunger and thirst when they went on long hunting trips in the desert. After consuming a slice of the succulent hoodia plant you won’t feel hungry.

Hoodia contains an active ingredient responsible for suppressing the appetite: steroidal glycoside, known as P57. This Hoodia ingredient was isolated in 1977 by the South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.

Human Clinical Trials on Hoodia Gordonii

The first animal trial on Hoodia that we know of was conducted on rats by Dr Richard Dixey of Phytopharm, a UK based company. He fed the rats with Hoodia and they stopped eating and lost weight without any adverse side effects.

The first human clinical trial on Hoodia that we know of was also conducted by Phytopharm. Severely obese volunteers from Leicester, England were selected and they received either placebo or hoodia gordonii extract. After 15 days the results were stunning. The people who received the hoodia gordoni extract had reduced their daily food intake by 1000 calories per day by making the volunteers feel less hungry and reducing their cravings for food.

The active ingredient of the Hoodia Gordonii plant is responsible for the appetite suppressant properties of Hoodia extracts. This compound increases the content of the Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) by 50-150% in the hypothalamic neurons and thereby the food intake in humans are normally reduces by 30-50%.

Hoodia Diet Pills

The Weight Loss Institute researched a product called Hoodia Gordonii Pure, which is a natural weight loss supplement, and came to the conclusion that this is one of the most promising natural Hoodia diet pills available today and has since been offering it to its customers and patients. The key ingredient in the Hoodia Gordonii Pure diet pills is the 800 mg of 100% natural Hoodia Gordonii extract. This works as an appetite suppressant and reduces the interest in food, and it has also been shown to delay the time after eating before hunger sets in again. There are no known side effects of this product.