The herbal supplement hoodia gordonii or just hoodia for short has gained in popularity as a natural way for people to lose weight. The first part of this article looked at what hoodia’s key ingredient is (something called p57) and how scientists are looking at why and how it may help us shed pounds.
For example, one study found that injecting p57 into the portion of rats’ brains that control appetite led to altered levels of ATP, which is a molecule responsible for energy, and that may also have an impact on hunger. The rats that got the p57 injections also ate less than the rats that received an injection of a placebo. In other words, p57 and thus hoodia appears to work as a natural appetite suppressant. More specifically, the p57 has an effect on the brain that is similar to glucose; it sends the message that we are full, even if we have not eaten anything. As a bonus, people who have tried hoodia often report that even though their appetites drop and they don’t eat as much as they once did, they are not left feeling weak and jittery from the lessened amount of food.
In other words, p57 and thus hoodia appears to work as a natural appetite suppressant. More specifically, the p57 has an effect on the brain that is similar to glucose; it sends the message that we are full, even if we have not eaten anything. As a bonus, people who have tried hoodia often report that even though their appetites drop and they don’t eat as much as they once did, they are not left feeling weak and jittery from the lessened amount of food.
One human-based clinical trial of hoodia was done on just 18 subjects who found that taking hoodia caused them to eat about 1,000 calories a day less food compared to a placebo group. But this study was obviously quite small and it wasn’t ever published or anything so many people feel it needs more work.
If you do decide to give hoodia a try to see if it will work for you and your weight loss program, please keep in mind that although it is a natural product, it can also lead to side effects in certain groups of people. For example, if you have diabetes or if you are taking medication to control your blood sugar, please be extra careful and double-check with your physician before trying hoodia. Also, you should talk to your doctor first if you have any heart issues or take heart medicines, or have a bleeding or blood clotting disorder.
From what I have read, hoodia sounds like it has a lot of potential to help people, but the studies to back it up just aren’t there yet. I don’t know about you, but I like to have a lot of clinical back up to the supplements that I spend my hard-earned money on. But at the same time, it has been researched extensively and what scientists are saying about it does seem plausible.
So what do you think? Have you tried hoodia before? If so, how did it go? Or if not, would you try it in an effort to lose weight? Or do you prefer to take things that have more science behind them rather than just mainly anecdotal evidence?
References:
www.drugs.com/hoodia.html
http://altmedicine.about.com/od/popularhealthdiets/a/hoodia1.htm
www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=57305