Hoodia Gordonii

There has been lots of buzz regarding the power of the African hoodia cactus. Almost anyone looking for diet aids will have heard about or read about hoodia. Some of what you have read may not be all accurate. For example the plant is not really a cactus, though ti looks like one.

Who Discovered Hoodia

Humans have been using the African Hoodia cactus as an appetite suppressant for approximately one hundred thousand years. It was first used by Bushmen in South Africa, who gnawed on the plant so that they could go without food for a considerable length of time without losing energy or feeling hungry. Obviously the Bushmen could get a lot more done during the course of a day if they didn’t have to stop at regular intervals in order to eat.

Studies into Hoodia

Clinical research on the African Hoodia cactus did not begin until the 1960s. South African researchers eventually managed to find out which ingredient in the cactus suppresses the appetite. They called this ingredient P57 and sold the license to a British pharmaceutical company called Phytopharm. The company then spent a considerable amount of time and money on clinical trials. Phytopharm managed to prove that ingredient P57 does suppress the appetite. Obese people who were given P57 from hoodia consumed an average of one thousand calories less than they usually would in a twenty-four hour period.

Since then various pharmaceutical companies have struggled to manufacture ingredient P57 into a viable diet drug with varying degrees of success. The problem with the African Hoodia cactus is that it is hard to synthesize the active ingredient and the plant will only grow in southern parts of Africa.

The Desire for Money

As often happens, unscrupulous supplement companies have cashed in on the publicity surrounding the African Hoodia cactus plant. Consequently many supplements on the market falsely claim to contain the active ingredient from the African Hoodia cactus. In fact these bogus supplements contain absolutely nothing that suppresses the appetite or helps with weight loss. Consumers who wish to buy diet pills that contain the ingredient P57 from the African Hoodia cactus should therefore be very cautious about what they purchase.

Find the Genuine Hoodia

There are many scam Hoodia supplements on the market. However, that doesn’t mean that there are no diet pills that genuinely contain ingredient P57 from the African Hoodia cactus. It simply signifies that it is difficult to find legitimate pills that really do contain Hoodia cactus extract.

If you want to purchase a genuine African Hoodia cactus product then be prepared to do some very careful research so that you can be sure you aren’t simply wasting your money. In particular, look for consumer written reviews and do not be taken in by any exaggerated claims made by or on behalf of the company that is selling the product.

Conclusion

While the hoodia plant has been use for centuries by the Bushman it has only recently been available to most of us. But know that it is available it is a great product to assist you with losing weight. Do not give up finding a quality hoodia product, it will be worth it.