Is Hoodia the Right Dietary Suppressant Choice for You?

Hoodia is from the plant family Apocynaceae, which has a Genus of 13 species in its plant Family and is from the sub family Asclepiadoideae. They are stem succulents, which means that they are plants, which are adapted to arid conditions and characterized by fleshy water-storing tissues that act as water reservoirs. They are also described as cacti form due to the fact that they have a remarkable similarity to the unrelated cactus family. Many of the plants have been know to reach up to 1m high and have large flowers, which have a flesh color and a very strong smell. Several of the species are grown as garden plants with one species, Hoodia gordonii, currently being used as an appetite suppressant

Many of the known Hoodia species are protected plants and are typically found in the Namib Desert and have a range from Central Namibia to southern Angola, especially in the plains and rocky areas. Common names include "Bushman's Hat" and "Queen of the Namib".

As recently as January 18, 2008, the Botanic Gardens Conservation International stated that "400 medicinal plants were at risk of extinction due to over-collection and deforestation, jeopardizing the discovery of future cures for disease." Among these were Yew trees of which the bark was used for the cancer drug paclitaxel and Hoodia from Namibia, which is the source of many weight loss drugs.

Every years Consumers spend more than $40 billion on products, which are supposedly designed to help them lose weight. None of them seemed to be working too well until Hoodia came along, which is a natural substance that literally takes your appetite away.

It's very different from other diet stimulants like Ephedra and Phenfen which are now banned because of the life-threatening side effects, which they had been known to cause. Hoodia doesn't stimulate at all Scientists say, it simply fools the brain by making you think you're full, even if you haven't taken a bite to eat.

This southern African succulent plant has been know to have a nasty after taste but for many generations of San bushmen in the Kalahari Desert, it has been used to suppress their appetites on innumerable hunting trips. As a result of this information, it has become the focus of many quick-fix weight loss programs.

How was Hoodia's found to be able to reduce appetite?

Hoodia was originally investigated as part of a scientific research which tested lots of bush foods and detected that amazingly Hoodia extracts had the ability to make you feel fuller than you really were while lowering body weight without toxicity. Please keep in mind that only Hoodia gordonii's extract is the only extract that has been clinically tested on human volunteers to date.

To date their have been no known side effects from Hoodia intake but that does not mean that more safety studies are not needed before Hoodia can get the green light for safety and efficacy.