The Genuine Hoodia Gordonii Weight Loss Story

Hoodia Gordonii is a prickly plant that looks remarkably similar to a cactus. For centuries, the otherwise insignificant succulent has been growing happily and unobtrusively in the Kalahari Desert. Recently, the succulent has become an international media superstar due to its natural appetite-suppressing properties. In a world whose waistline is rapidly expanding, Hoodia Gordonii is big news.

The bush men of the Kalahari have long recognized the properties of the plant and often chewed its stem to fight off hunger and thirst when hunting in the desert. When scientists at the South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Affairs (CSIR) became aware of the plants’ existence and medical properties, they began to study it with interest.

The active ingredient in Hoodia Gordonii known as P57 was patented in 1996. Since then, the international pharmaceuticals heavyweight Pfizer has collaborated with a UK-based company, PhytoPharm, to develop an appetite suppressant from the active ingredients of Hoodia. Development was ceased in 2002, with Pfizer stating that it was very difficult to synthesize an appetite suppressant from the active ingredients of Hoodia. In addition, the company found it difficult to remove chemicals from P57 that were poisonous to the human liver and new that if released, their drug would not receive sanction from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

It hasn’t been conclusively demonstrated in scientific trials that Hoodia Gordonii works as an appetite suppressant. There are no scientific studies that have been clearly able to show the efficacy of orally-administered Hoodia to effect weight loss. Animal trials of the supplement have returned mixed findings. One study, which injected P57 directly into the brains of rats, found that the P57 was easily broken down in the liver and as such, was eliminated from the body before it could exert a physiological effect.

Another study tested Hoodia Gordonii in a sample of seven overweight patients who dropped an average of 3.3% of their overall bodyweight during the trial. The very small number of subjects means that little confidence can be placed in the study’s findings.

Lack of scientific evidence has not stopped enterprising dietary supplements companies from marketing their products as containing Hoodia Gordonii.

One company, Trimspa, cited that their Hoodia-containing products will not only suppress appetite, but lower blood pressure as well. The FDA has advised that Trimspa’s claims are not supportable by scientific evidence. The Trimspa brand is currently the subject of a lawsuit in California, over claims that the brand does not actually contain any Hoodia-derived active ingredients.

The biggest loser in the Hoodia hype has been the smallest players – the San people of the Kalahari. When PhytoPharm sold the P57 patent to Pfizer, the San tribe were completely unaware of the multi-million dollar deal. Challenged over the exclusion of the Sans people from any profits of the deal, the Chief Executive Officer of PhytoPharm expressed surprise, saying "I honestly believed that these Bushmen had died out and am sorry to hear that they feel hard done by." The statement was labeled as equal parts naïve and deceitful, and was the beginning of a campaign by the San people to extract remuneration from the Goliaths of the pharmaceuticals industry.

In 2001, the San peoples engaged a prominent lawyer to speak on their behalf. As a group, the San people are not opposed to assisting the Western world to develop medical treatments based on their traditional knowledge, but they refuse to be exploited by the so-called "Bio-Pirates" of the pharmaceutical industry. To avoid appearing in the international media spotlight with a large amount of egg on their face, the CSIR brokered a backroom deal with the San people, which entitled the native group to share in a percentage of the profits and any spin-offs resulting from the marketing of Hoodia-containing products.

The Hoodia Gordonii is now a protected plant, that may only be harvested from its natural Kalahari Desert by the individuals who live there and a small handful of companies who have been granted a harvesting license.

Many international commentators have argued that the Hoodia Gordonii story is just one example of exploitation of an indigenous tribe, whilst others believe that the victory exacted by the San people over the pharmaceutical companies is "a small step towards justice". Nevertheless, the scientific jury remain out on the effectiveness of Hoodia Gordonii Weight Loss claims and the waistline of the world continues to expand and still 80% Of Hoodia Gordonii Sold Is Fake.