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Hoodia Gordonii
is a plant of a spiny and leafless variety in the family of
apocynaceae. It has been widely used for centuries for its medicinal
uses. The plant is native to Namibia and South Africa although these
days it may be found elsewhere as well. The plant comes across as quite
unpleasant, being pollinated mostly by flies and the flowers have a
stench of rotten meat. However, the plant is certainly not without its
positive uses.
Hoodia Gordonii has been known by the native populations throughout
history. Although not commonly used, it has been used occasionally in
the treatment of minor infections and a number of indigestion problems.
Another historic use of the plant was to help suppress appetite for
people taking part in extensive hunting trips across the Kalahari
Desert.
The ingredient, Hoodia, was isolated in 1977 by South African
researchers, as being the appetite suppressant. It was then patented in
1996. Since then it has become a significant main active ingredient in
a number of appetite suppressing drugs. Nowadays, Hoodia Gordonii is
protected from harvesting in most cases with only a small number of
companies having a license to harvest it.
The plant is currently threatened by extinction and international trade
is closely monitored these days. Because of this, it is illegal without
certain licenses to export it outside of Africa where it grown
naturally. There are also a number of other restrictions on its
importation, imposed by the United States and other countries.
In spite of the research and consequent development of Hoodia Gordonii as an appetite suppressant,
there is actually no formal scientific evidence that it works to
suppress the appetite of humans. Because of this, there are few weight
loss experts who would recommend it to patients suffering from obesity.
As of a couple of years ago, there are a few independently run labs
which are still conducting tests to find out the true benefits, if any,
of the main ingredient of the drug, but so far no evidence has been
uncovered that it has anything to offer to the world of medicine.
Due to the age old reputation of Hoodia Gordonii being an effective
appetite suppressant, many markets have attempted to capitalize on this
and join in with the rapidly growing weight loss industry. While
marketing campaigns trying to sell products based on the ingredients of
the plant claim that it lowers blood pressure and lessens the appetite,
it has largely been proven that this is not the case.
A number of providers such as online pharmacies who have been trying to sell products based on Hoodia Gordonii
have found themselves in lawsuits. Email spam advertising such products
has also been found all over the Internet, dramatically reducing the
credibility of the drug. Hoodia Gordonii based products are typically
marketed in a number of ways. These include tinctures, syrups, tablets,
capsules and may even be integrated into diet cereal bars etc.
Currently, Hoodia Gordonii sells for about $130 per kilogram, down from
$250 back in 2007.
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