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Hoodia Gordonii

The Kalahari desert in southern Africa is a barren, hostile landscape. But the Bushmen of the Khoi-San tribe have learned over thousands of years to make use of the hidden treasures of the desert. One of these is a prickly plant: the hoodia cactus. The cactus grows in large parts of South Africa. 20 other species belong to the Asclepiadaceae family. These unusual flat flowers bloom in harmonious shades of red, purple, brown or dark yellow, and legend has it that the Khoi-San used the cactus to quench their hunger and thirst for days on their hunts. In the sixties, South African soldiers are said to have noticed the appetite-suppressing effect. At that time, they used Bushmen as trackers in the Angolan war. The slender natives managed almost without food. Instead, they ate a piece of hoodia cactus every now and then. A sophisticated molecule (P57) in the flesh of the Hoodia fools the brain into believing that the blood sugar level is already sufficient. The P57 molecule has been shown to send a signal 100,000 times more powerful than glucose to the brain with the message that the body is full (satiated). So if you chew just a little Hoodia, you feel full as a cardboard box. The active ingredient in Hoodia is not an opiate and does not cause a euphoric state. According to the Bushmen's experience, you can walk all day without eating, make love all night and party with Hoodia. Hoodia is also said to prevent the subsequent hangover. The state of South Africa sensed a goldmine years ago: the plant is grown in large quantities in a secret location.

Desert plant without side effects

South African scientists took a closer look at the desert plant and isolated an active ingredient extract called "P 57" in 1996. The license for the further development and worldwide marketing of the appetite suppressant was sold to the English eco-pharmaceutical company Phytopharm the following year.

An initial small study by this company with 18 participants was very promising:

The result: Hoodia cactus reduces daily calorie intake and thus helps with weight loss. In clean double-blind studies, nine overweight Britons lost several pounds when they swallowed the hoodia cactus in capsule form: They only consumed an average of 2,200 calories per day, although they were allowed to eat as much as they wanted. Another nine men who were fobbed off with a placebo, on the other hand, ate 3,200 calories a day. No side effects were observed. The American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer sensed a billion-dollar business and took over the license rights in 2001 for 32 million dollars. Pfizer immediately commissioned a series of studies with animals and humans. In the animal studies, P57 completely inhibited the appetite of rats that had not been fed for a long time. When P57 was injected directly into the brain of the rats, the amount of ATP in the hypothalamus increased by 50 to 150 percent in an instant. This is crucial because ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is the human body's most important source of energy. All the food we consume is ultimately converted into ATP. Unlike other weight loss support substances, Hoodia does not have a stimulating effect on the body and therefore does not endanger the cardiovascular system or organs.

Sharing in the profits

The Hoodia cactus story made headlines around the world a year later when the African Bushmen succeeded in claiming a share of the profits from the commercialization of their traditional knowledge. This was seen as a historic victory for an indigenous minority. After years of legal wrangling, the San Bushman Council finally signed an agreement that secured the indigenous people 1.5 million euros and a six percent share of the profits. There were further headlines when the major corporation Pfizer returned its license rights to the small English company Phytopharm in the same year, thus withdrawing from the business. The official explanation: Pfizer was dissolving its natural products division. According to its own statements, Phytopharm is currently in negotiations with three large manufacturers of dietary supplements and plans to run further studies on "P 57" from 2005.

The fact is

It is still unclear exactly how the hoodia cactus works. So far, no further study results have been published on the mysterious substance "P 57". Nevertheless, the market is booming. However, initial animal studies indicate that Hoodia is surprisingly free of side effects, considering its potent appetite suppressant effect.

Dosage

Studies have shown that supplementing with Hoodia can reduce food consumption by up to 60%. For this purpose, taking 300-500mg twice a day on an empty stomach seems advisable.

References

  1. Handbuch der Arzneipflanzen; Wyk, Wink, Wink; Deutscher Apotheker Verlag, Stuttgart 2004
  2. Slimming with Bushmen. Diet pill from the desert." A report by the Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation http://www.br-online.de/politik/ausland/themen/09224/
  3. "Hoodia - The cactus that doesn't sting, but curbs the appetite". An article from "Medizin Aspekte" http://www.medizin-aspekte.de/0502/alternativen/hoodia_kaktus.htm
  4. A short report on Hoodia, which also emphasizes the potency-enhancing effect of the plant. http://www.3sat.de/3sat.php?http://www.3sat.de/nano/cstuecke/50566/
  5. Botanical information about the plant family to which Hoodia belongs. http://www.ig-ascleps.org/Asclepiadaceae.htm
  6. Hamburger Abendblatt: http://www2.abendblatt.de/daten/2003/03/28/139217.html
  7. ZDF Advisor http://www.zdf.de/ZDFde/inhalt/0/0,1872,2122528,00.html
  8. BBC News: http://www.news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/correspondent/2947810.stm